Studer Community Institute

Hawkshaw proposals will have July 1 hearing

June 15, 2015
/ Shannon Nickinson
/ government

The Pensacola City Council — acting as the Community Redevelopment Agency — heard an update on proposed development plans for the long-suffering Hawkshaw property at Ninth Avenue and Romana Street. Earlier this month, a selection committee ranked proposals from the five responses to the request for proposals to build a walkable, urban mixed-use redevelopment project. The top three were, in order: — The ITEX Group LLC: The ITEX Group, based in Port Arthur, Texas, and its affiliated companies ITEX Development, ICON Builders and ITEX Property Management propose a 180-unit apartment development called The Encore on 9th Avenue. It calls for a five-story building that wraps around a parking structure. It includes efficiency/one bedroom, two-bedroom and some three-bedroom units. Rent would range from $900 to $1,600 a month. Purchase price: $1 million. The full proposal is here. — Whitesell-Green and H+H Building Group: Proposes to build 37 townhomes on the site and two, 20-unit condo buildings. The townhomes would range from 2 Bedroom/1.5 Bath, 1,100 square feet floor plans to 3 Bedroom/3 Bathroom, 1,650 square feet floor plans. Sale prices range from $225,00 to $350,000. The condo buildings would be between 4,000 and 5,000 square feet of leasable retail/commercial space. A mixture of floor plans will be provided from 1 Bedroom/1.5 Bath 1000 square feet to 2 Bedroom/2 Bathroom 1,300 square feet floor plans. Sale prices range from $215,000 to $295,00. Purchase price: $1,280,000. — Granger Development and Brokerage Services, A Door Properties LLC, SNS Realty: Proposes a nine-story, 87,600 square foot residential mixed-use building with 47 for sale residential condos. The first floor of the project would be the new home of Still Waters Medical Spa, now on Tarragona Street. The condos would range from 850 square foot units to 1,700 square foot units. Three, 3,000 square foot penthouses would be available. A rain garden and a pond are noted to handle stormwater as part of the proposal. Purchase price: $1.2 million. The full proposal is here. An appraisal done on the property in May says the 96,525 square foot parcel is valued at $1,740,000. Helen Gibson, chief of neighborhoods for the city, told the CRA that the selection committee appointed to evaluate proposals for the property will hear oral presentations from the top three developers on July 1. It is possible that the committee could have a recommendation for the CRA to act on at their July meeting. The Committee’s deliberation is open to the public, though the presentations are not. Councilwoman Sherri Myers asked how records of the closed meeting would be kept for posterity. Gibson said that it can be recorded. Councilman Larry Johnson noted he hopes that part of the committee’s work will include a thorough evaluation of the “financial wherewithal of whoever comes forward.” “Something that gives us a comfort level so that we don’t spend hours with a group and find out late in the game that they can’t get financed,” Johnson said.

Back to Blogs

Hawkshaw proposals will have July 1 hearing

Recent Posts