After more than a decade, Pensacola's Community Maritime Park officially has a new tenant.
Inspired Communities of Florida's lease for a proposed 240- to 280- unit apartment building and a 125-room Hard Rock Reverb hotel at Maritime Park won approval Thursday night after a two-hour debate by the Pensacola City Council.
Pensacola City Council voted 7-0 to approve the 100-year lease after the council added an amendment that requires at least 70% of the street-level of the building to be "activated" with some type of retail or office use, including "pop-up" retail that could be removed during severe weather.
Inspired Communities of Florida is partnering with EJ Smith Enterprises, the real estate development company owned by Emmitt Smith, to build the apartments and hotel. Smith was at the council meeting for the vote Thursday.
The developers will also use the Florida Live Local Act to make 40% of the apartment's workforce housing with rents affordable for individuals who make between 80% and 120% of the area median income for the Pensacola area.
According to the latest income figures from the Florida Housing Finance Corporation, apartments with rents between $1,366 to $2,079 a month for a single-income household would fall into the 80% to 120% of AMI.
The developer is also bringing in the world's largest architecture firm, Gensler, to design the building and Kravitz Design, a global conceptual design firm helmed by music and style icon Lenny Kravitz, to design the interior of the hotel.
The hotel will have a full-service restaurant, a rooftop bar with views of Blue Wahoos Stadium and Pensacola Bay, a lobby bar and lounge, a quick-service restaurant and a fitness center.
Pensacola Mayor D.C. Reeves said the lease marked a crucial step into fulfilling the potential of Community Maritime Park that he first read about when he was a 22-year-old sports writer interning in Dallas, Texas.
"We're at a point where we can finally do what we said we're going to do," Reeves said.
Previously:Twelve-story apartment and hotel development proposed for Community Maritime Park
Inspired Communities has held an option to lease the property since 2022 and has been in negotiations with the city over the last two years.
Reeves had Pensacola Finance Director Amy Lovoy present an analysis of the proposed lease versus the 2022 option agreement approved by the City Council. She found that under the option agreement the city would've only generated revenue of $500,000 by 2044, but under the proposed lease negotiated by Reeves' administration the city will see $19 million in revenue by 2044.
Under the lease, the rent for 2024 will be $30,250. In 2025, it goes up to $184,250. Then until 2031 the rent will be $275,000. After 2031, the rent will increase by 5% every five years.
Additionally, Inspired Communities will pay "common area fees" of $30,850 starting in 2026, and those fees will increase by 5% each year beginning in 2031.
The lease also requires Inspired Communities to spend at least $55 million on design and construction, though the developers say the project cost will be closer to $150 million when its complete.
The lease includes a requirement for the developers to follow the "covenant for the community," which requires at least 70% of the contractors on the project to be local contractors.
The two developments would occupy what is known as "Lot 5" directly across Cedar Street from the main entrance to Blue Wahoos Stadium. Both buildings would be built on parking deck "podiums" of at least three stories, and they would be connected with a third-floor breeze-way that would also host retail or restaurant options.
The parking deck would have cutouts that allow for pop-up markets or other uses, such as game days at Blue Wahoos Stadium.
Although the lease passed with a unanimous vote, it did not appear to be heading towards a unanimous vote at the beginning of the discussion.
Two council members, Jennifer Brahier and Allison Patton, wanted more assurance on the design of the building. Brahier went as far to suggest having the design come back to City Council at some point in the future.
Deputy Administrator David Forte said that even with the developer using the Live Local Act, which exempts it from height restrictions at that property, the project will still have to go before the Pensacola Planning Board for aesthetic review.
Reeves hired Marina Khoury, a partner with the DPZ planning firm and one of the authors of the West Main Master Plan, to review the proposal for adherence to the plan, which is supposed to shape development of Maritime Park.
Khoury said in a letter, she believes Inspire Communities' plan meets the "intent and spirit" of the West Main Master plan with the exception of the ground floor. Khoury said she believed if the council requires 70% of activation using the pop-up concept Inspired Communities had already proposed, that would address the issue.
Councilman Jared Moore had an amendment prepared after reading the letter Thursday afternoon and put it forward. Representatives of Inspired Communities said they agreed with the amendment and the council voted to pass it.
Councilwoman Allison Patton pointed out that the city was putting a lot of trust in them to develop the property in the right way.
"This project for our community is huge," Patton said. "We don't get to do this again. It really will set the standard for Maritime Park."
Under the lease, the developer has 12 months to obtain building permits from the city and construction must begin within 45 days of getting the permits
