The development team behind the approved Reverb by Hard Rock hotel and Rhythm Lofts tower is advancing plans for a second phase at Community Maritime Park, proposing to transform the stadium’s main surface lot into a mixed-use district with new housing, offices, retail, and a city-owned parking garage.
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The plan, outlined in a public financing memorandum prepared by advisors Avison Young and FMS Bonds for The Dawson Company and its partners, envisions a 20-acre expansion that would introduce “high-end restaurants and retail, upscale lifestyle hotels, [and] innovative workplaces for businesses of all sizes … directly adjacent [to the] Blue Wahoos stadium.”
Renderings depict a structured parking garage wrapped with ground-floor storefronts and a public plaza connecting the site to Lot 5, where the Reverb by Hard Rock and Rhythm Lofts are slated to rise. The concept would mark the first major private development at the park in nearly a decade and aims to fulfill long-standing goals to convert surface parking areas into a walkable, year-round destination.
Parking and financing at the heart of the plan
The developers say the city must resolve a long-standing parking obligation before construction can begin. According to the memo, Pensacola is required to provide roughly 350 public spaces to existing tenants and to the Lot 7 developer, identified in city records as Valencia Hotel Group. Building a replacement garage, the memo estimates, would cost between $20 million and $25 million — or roughly $60,000 to $70,000 per space. The memo concludes that having either the city pay from its coffers or Dawson shoulder the full cost would be "untenable" under current conditions.
To overcome that hurdle, the proposal outlines two potential paths: using the city’s existing Urban Core Community Redevelopment Area — referred to in the document as a tax allocation district, or TAD — or creating a new Community Development District, or CDD, covering the same area.
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Both tools are used across Florida to pay for public infrastructure such as roads, sidewalks, parks, and parking garages, though a CDD would be new for Pensacola. The difference lies in how they raise and manage money.
A CRA is a dependent district governed by the city. It captures the growth in property tax revenues — known as the tax increment — within its boundaries and reinvests that money in projects that support redevelopment. A CDD, by contrast, is an independent unit of local government that can issue bonds and repay them through special assessments charged to the properties that benefit from the improvements.
In both cases, funds can only be used for public assets, not private buildings. The memo lists potential uses such as a structured parking garage, streetscapes, stormwater systems, environmental remediation, and public parks or playgrounds. A CDD would be governed by a five-member board and operate separately from the city, while coordinating on ownership and maintenance of completed projects.
The authors say such a district could be structured “off balance sheet” to the city, meaning its debts and obligations would remain separate from the general fund. They estimate the formation process would take six to nine months.
Relationship to Phase 1 and surrounding parcels
The Dawson Company, operating locally as Inspired Communities of Florida, holds leases for Lots 4 and 5 at Community Maritime Park. Phase 1, on Lot 5, includes the Reverb by Hard Rock hotel and Rhythm Lofts residences — the first residential and hospitality development at the park. Phase 2, proposed for Lot 4, would add public parking and commercial space, complementing the adjacent project and extending investment across the site.
The parking garage would also help satisfy requirements for Lot 7, where Valencia Hotel Group holds a development option. City officials have previously identified structured parking as a prerequisite for continued build-out at the park.
What comes next
No formal petition to create a CDD has been filed, and city leaders have not yet taken up the proposal. Key questions remain over the district’s boundaries, revenue sources, and governance structure, as well as the city’s role in owning or maintaining completed facilities.
If the council proceeds, district formation would begin with a petition defining boundaries and naming five board members. Subsequent steps would include an engineer’s report, a financing plan, and public hearings before any bonds or assessments could be approved.
The plan, if adopted, would mark a significant next step in realizing the park’s original vision — pairing public amenities and waterfront access with private investment to create a self-sustaining downtown destination.
