Mayor D.C. Reeves provided updates on Pensacola’s development landscape during his Wednesday press conference, outlining progress on multiple high-profile projects while addressing ongoing challenges in downtown redevelopment and affordable housing initiatives.
Airport Expansion Moves Forward
The city’s major airport terminal expansion project is nearing the construction phase, with an October groundbreaking now targeted. While the bond authorization increased from $100 million to $150 million, Reeves clarified that this represents financial cushioning rather than project scope creep, with actual costs expected to be between $107 and $112 million.
- “When you look at any project that gets bonded, it’s customary that it goes to a much higher number to ensure you’re good. That doesn’t mean that that’s the commitment to spend,” Reeves explained.
The mayor emphasized the complexity of maintaining airport operations during construction, noting the need for temporary infrastructure, such as “fake second floors,” to keep TSA operations running while building new security areas. This operational continuity requirement drives much of the additional expense beyond basic construction materials.
- Added Note: Labor Day weekend numbers showed robust travel demand with 51,750 passengers, representing a 9.2% increase over 2024. The airport installed new digital signage providing real-time parking availability, with Saturday seeing lots reach 95% capacity.
Bay Bluffs Development
After an eight-month wait, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and Conservation Florida have reached an agreement on the Bay Bluffs Park. Public listening sessions on how to spend the $2.2 million grant on park repairs and improvements will begin in October, regardless of whether a design consultant is in place.
The mayor set realistic expectations: “$2.2 million is not (a lot); there’s not going to be a community center on the bluff, but what kind of mix of primitive trails do we have? What would you want on pavilions up top? Maybe there’s lookouts that are compliant, but most of it goes back to primitive trails that could stay forever.”
Baptist Hospital Deal
Negotiations with County Commissioner Lumon May continue as multiple deadlines converge. The city faces expiring donation agreements and demolition bid timelines while working to craft a regional partnership that benefits both city and county interests.
“All I ask is take the vote. I mean, just take the vote. If it loses three-two or it loses four-one, I maintain, I respect that. I have to respect that it’s their government,” Reeves said. “But I’ve been more silent on that delay because I’ve been working directly with Commissioner May and understand I think he’s had lots of good insight on where this project can create community value for the county as well.”
The mayor indicated he won’t attend county commission meetings on the matter: “At the end of the day, the same way it’s the city council’s business to vote up or down, whatever they have. So I think they know where everybody stands.”
More Updates
Several smaller but significant projects are advancing:
– Cobb Center repairs: J Green Construction won the sub-$1.1 million contract for critical building envelope work
– Restroom facilities: Installations at both the skate park and MLK Plaza will proceed simultaneously this month
– Drainage improvements: While Main Street work was delayed by recent rains, the 12th and Fairfield intersection project finished three weeks ahead of schedule
Maritime Park Development Complexities
The city’s waterfront development continues with mixed progress. Lot 5 has a signed lease and millions already invested, but preliminary discussions about Lot 4 reveal significant parking challenges.
- “If you build something on Lot four, then you’ve got to replace a parking lot. And so we worked on Lot five as the way to kick the can, so to speak, on solving parking,” Reeves explained. “We’ve got 350 parking spaces, we’ve got parking obligations already out there. What happens now? So it’s a much more complex transaction.”
He stressed the projects’ independence: “There’s no codependence from the city’s perspective, there’s zero codependence on the completion success of five and the viability of four or the success of four.”
Affordable Housing Strategy Evolves
The mayor defended the Pensacola Motor Lodge property’s transition from ground lease to a potential sale structure, emphasizing that affordable housing requirements remain unchanged.
- “I think you can write a ground lease that’s like a sale and you can write a sale that’s like a ground lease,” Reeves explained. “We can list the property for sale with the exact same contingencies that you must have housing at 60% or 80%. And if they don’t meet those requirements, it comes back to the city.”
He emphasized the public safety improvement: “We had 2,300 calls for service there in 10 years, and now we don’t. We have zero calls for service. So we are absolutely from a public safety standpoint in a massively better place than we’ve ever been since we closed on that property.”
What Happened on North Palafox
The proposed purchase of the former medical center building on Palafox has collapsed due to out-of-state owners refusing to allow city inspection before closing.
- “The hesitancy to allow the city to go in the building before the expectation of being paid is the fundamental basis of real estate,” Reeves said. “If we can’t buy the building from you because you’re worried about what we’re going to see when you go in, it just tells you what you need to know.”
With code enforcement fines approaching $100,000, the mayor expressed frustration: “It’s the flagship of commercial blight in our city. And that’s why again, why we have across our city commercial code enforcement violations, it’s been a nuisance on the surrounding neighborhood.”