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Working After Midnight, Escambia BOCC Postpones Action On OLF-8 Sale
December 13, 2024
After meetings that started at 9 a.m. Thursday and ended after midnight, the Escambia County Commission did not take any action on the latest multi-million dollar offers for the county-owned OLF-8 property on Nine Mile Road.
The day began with three offers on the table ranging from $30 to $42.5 million for the entirety of the 540-acre parcel.
After a morning agenda review meeting and an evening meeting that started at 4:30 p.m., the discussion at midnight evolved into different, conflicting motions that eventually died without a second or were withdrew.
Commissioner Steven Barry made a motion that did not receive a second to enter into negotiations with TRI-W Associates, while Commissioner Steve Stroberger made a motion to negotiate with Fred Hemmer and Rob Ahrens of Beulah Town Center LLC. Stroberger’s motion did not come to a vote and was withdrawn.
“I don’t like to vote at the midnight hour for something that significant,” Commissioner Lumon May said just before midnight. “You want me to make this decision at midnight when we have been at this for about 15 hours.”
“I want to take a breather,” May said in the meeting, which adjourned at 12:15 a.m. Friday.
“It’s a task that I feel is almost impossible,” County Attorney Alison Rogers said about negotiating with potential buys without definite parameters like price, following a master plan, and terms.
The commission will continue their OLF-8 discussions in January.
Below: The OLF-8 property on Nine Mile Road. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Comments
14 Responses to “Working After Midnight, Escambia BOCC Postpones Action On OLF-8 Sale”
Just a thought. Why don’t they do something that in the long run will generate revenue and make the entire property a solar farm. Would take 10 years to pay for it’s self and after that could generate 15 to 20 million a year in revenue. Just saying.
in the beginning many of us supporters of LBC fought hard to keep it. We recommended that BOCC approach Navy to put Navy Federal on OLF8. We were told that it couldn’t be done. After the sale of LBC, OLF8 became a reality. It was supposed to be used for high paying jobs to stimulate the stagnate job market in ESC County.
The problem now is that their plans fell apart. They have invested more than 42 million in OLF8 and are trying to recoup their losses. Some high interest loans are eating up the budget and they want this boondoggle to go away. We were deceived from the beginning, 4H lost out and the taxpayers are taking a hit. Build what you proposed in the beginning!
The land swap trade was done to create a industrial park, nothing more nothing less. The commissioners were attempting to create higher paying jobs for the citizens of Escambia County. As the area found heavey growth and a few people started to seek more houses, appartments and a walkable town center with stores and restaurants. Yes, just le Mikestone on Nine Mile. It never turned out the way they wanted. Why try again, no one won. I hear there would be to many trucks going down Frank Reader from any warehouses, many that would only operated weekdays. Yet, no one complained when around 500 homes have been built on Frank Reader north of the OLF8, I guess the 500 homes with 2 cars each made about a 1,000 cars of traffic didn’t matter. Yes I like the mixed use approach but let’s cut out half the new homes and add the extra industry area.
So tired of the county not knowing what to do with it. Heck plant some corn and cotton on it
It’s not going to be a park, so let’s come to realization of that. As for Escambia County setting aside 270 acres light Industrial is a horrible idea. All you will do is bring in low wage jobs claiming 17$ an hr is good pay, (lol) when we know that is not. You need to just sell it all and take that 42 million and do something constructive with it, that doesn’t involve pay raises to county commissioners. Just food for thought the avg Amazon Warehouse takes up 250 acres so dont think that’s an option either. LETS MOVE ON!
High tech jobs and income premise was the theme when the Boc voted to buy it. Now the two members left who pushed for it , want to sale it for housing , without the infrastructure to support it . Wonder how much are these buyers donating to their PACs .
Put in a bunch of nail salons, vape / kratom / CBD shops, a handful of food trucks, a Goodwill, a gun store, and a pawnshop or two. Maybe a ‘yer-gonna-burn-in-hell’ church. That way, it will fit right in with the whole Pensacola vibe. We all know this is being dragged out to maximize the bribery and corruption potential. Any reasonable city / county would keep it as green space in perpetuity. We’ve ruined the beaches… let’s at least keep something nice.
I can find news reports of a potential offer for this land by developers going back to June 2016. More than eight years later our county commission still cannot make a decision about who buys the property to put tens of millions of dollars in Escambia county’s coffers, and develops it to increase the local tax base.
Dawdlers of the Highest Order!
We desperately need better paying jobs, but this lot will probably end up with all apartments on it.
@Bobby
money in the bank?
Sell it and collect taxes on it will be a much better return out of the land than sitting at no returns since owned
I am pretty sure that the citizens were told that this property would be used for job creation. That was the whole premise of the deal to buy it and build the Navy a field in Santa Rosa to replace it. We were supposed to get high paying high tech type jobs. What happened?
I don’t agree with the push to build more housing on this property as it does not comport with the original idea to create jobs for our citizens and kids. And I don’t mean more service industry jobs with low pay.
The taxpayer money used to acquire this property was not just that of the Beulah residents, but all Escambia county residents. The compromise was to have a “Town Center” with amenities for local residents. But the core purpose of the land should be revenue generation for the citizens, not an economic landfall for some developers to get rich off of.
Commissioners, I urge you to be vigilant and look after the best interests of ALL Escambia citizens and steer this to fruition with dedicated space for job creation. That which you sold us on to begin with, and yes I am calling both Steven Barry and Lumon May here as they are the only two on the board who voted to buy this property to begin with.
KL is right. Need to make a decision. Since it is a difficult one, let’s just go with status quo. Let it sit for another 15 to 20 years and go back at it. Meanwhile, it’s money in the bank… With a nice return!
This is probably the biggest decision maker for the Escambia County Board members, but a decision needs to be made soon. The decision that is before them can generate enormous revenue for this area and it can keep many graduates to live and stay in Pensacola because of great pay and potential of many more opportunities for others to come to live in this jewel city. Please! Escambia Board Members Do not drag your feet in making the second biggest decision besides the Navy Federal Credit Union Expansion. You are not going to make everyone HAPPY in this decision. Perhaps, you can choose two offers or three to work in unison to come up with something that has never been accomplished in this cities that other cities will pattern after. My suggestion is to bring in a major companies lik
What if this amazing piece of property was left undeveloped and turned into a park for the people?
Once this is turned into another look-alike neighborhood or trendy shopping “lifestyle” center, there’s no going back.