Pensacola Mayor D.C. Reeves last week sought to reset the public debate over the future of the former Baptist Hospital campus, two weeks after the City Council paused an early-stage advisory contract amid public backlash. In a lengthy press conference on Dec. 30, Reeves addressed fears of displacement, confusion over the city’s selection of a New Orleans–based consultant, and what he said were widespread misunderstandings about the limited scope of work the city was proposing at this stage.
The council’s decision to table the proposed contract with Bayou District Consulting followed hours of public testimony from residents and organized activists who warned that redevelopment of the roughly 50-acre site could accelerate displacement in nearby Westside neighborhoods. In the days before the meeting, organizers with the Party for Socialism and Liberation distributed flyers in neighborhoods surrounding the campus, encouraging people to attend and speak out.
At the press conference, Reeves said he understood why communities near the site were sensitive to large redevelopment efforts but argued that much of the opposition to Bayou District was rooted in claims that did not match what the advisory contract actually authorized…