USPS Publication Number 16300
THE
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This Community Newspaper is a publication of the Escambia-Santa Rosa Bar Association
S E RV I N G T H E F I RS T J U D I C I A L C I RC U I T Vol. 25, No.46
November 12, 2025
SummationWeekly.com
1 Section, 10 Pages
Section A, Page 1
HOLLICE T. WILLIAMS PARK DESIGN + EXPANSION
CITY UNVEILS NEW DESIGN PLANS FOR PARK & LONG HOLLOW POND
Photos courtesy of City of Pensacola
By Nicole Willis
T
he City of Pensacola recently unveiled plans for a multidecade project that will reimagine Hollice T. Williams Park, the 1.3-mile stretch of green space that runs beneath Interstate 110. The redesign will add a variety of new public amenities and extend to the adjacent Long Hollow Stormwater Pond, transforming the two connected areas into a vibrant community-focused hub. This new vision plan is a result of extensive public input, replacing a previous plan that lacked sufficient community engagement. The park is named after Hollice T. Williams, Pensacola’s first African American City Councilman and longtime YMCA leader. The redesign is set to honor his legacy, as well as reconnect and restore vibrancy to the historically Black and working-class neighborhoods that were displaced by the construction of I-110 in the 1970s. To ensure the park redesign adheres to the community’s vision, the City Council adopted the Hollice T. Williams Equitable Development Plan in November 2024. The design team has worked closely with community groups, park users, area neighborhoods, state and federal agency stakeholders and former residents to ensure the community’s input is accurately reflected in the park design and expansion plans. Led by Pensacola native Katie Fox of Geosyntec Consultants, the team also includes renowned park designers Michael Van Valkenbergh Associates, and Pensacolabased landscape architects Jerry Pate Design. The equitable development plan lays out six guiding values for the redesign: inclusivity and
accessibility, history and culture, economic opportunity, environmental justice, housing affordability and local decision-making. These principles will guide both the park’s redevelopment and future growth around its perimeter. “We hope that the park will become a design precedent for the Gulf Coast region and will give back to the local community and the city in a big way,” Community Redevelopment Area Urban Design Planner for the City of Pensacola Rachel Bennett said. For years, there have been discussions around a potential revitalization of the park, but only recently has there been a look into the future of a reimagined Hollice T. Williams Park. “The City of Pensacola initiated the design process for the Hollice T. Williams Stormwater Park in 2010, resulting in the Hollice T. Williams Greenway Framework Plan, and in 2022, a set of 100 percent design plans,” Bennett explained. “The city utilized these design plans to apply for $25 million in Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery stormwater infrastructure grant money to fund the first phases of planning, design and construction of the Hollice T. Williams Stormwater Park and successfully won this grant money.” A 2021 park design was created but was later shelved after Pensacola Mayor D.C. Reeves received feedback from Harvard University’s Mayors Institute for City Design that the plan lacked enough community feedback and connectivity. This feedback prompted the city to take a step back and redesign the park with deeper community involvement. “We re-issued a Request for Qualifications in 2023 to redesign the park, and awarded the park redesign to Geosyntec Consultants and Michal Van Valkenburgh Associates, Inc. Since then, we
have initiated a robust community engagement effort, created an Equitable Development Framework Plan for the park and the half mile radius around the park, and won a $5 million Reconnecting Communities Grant to further the construction of the park,” Bennett said. In April 2025, the City of Pensacola unveiled its preliminary vision plan for the park, which included a public presentation featuring a 15-foot, 3-dimensional model of the proposed design plan. Spanning a total of approximately 110 acres, the reimagined park will provide community amenities, address the area’s stormwater management issues and celebrate and honor the history of the neighborhood. The construction of the entire park would span approximately 20 years, broken up into four phases. The first phase will cover 46 acres and is expected to be completed by the end of 2027. This ambitious timeline is largely driven by the required deadlines of nearly $30 million in grants the city won for the project. Some key features of phase one include connecting the Long Hollow Pond to the park with a central multimodal pathway, constructing a fullsize football field and more. Phases two through four are anticipated to take place over the next 20 years, and timelines for these phases will solidify as the project moves forward and more funding is secured. “The 2045 visioning plan for the Hollice T. Williams Stormwater Park and expansion envisions a wholistic, multifaceted and complex project that focuses on innovative stormwater infrastructure and landscaping that reduces local flooding, multimodal connectivity that reconnects a bisected and erased community due to the inser-
tion of I-110 and reclaims the space under I-110 and recreational project amenities (which are yet to be finalized) that address health and wellness, history, culture, entrepreneurial opportunities and public art,” Bennett explained. The new park design plan also calls for meandering sidewalks, new playgrounds, seating areas, basketball courts, infrastructure to reduce flood risks, an outdoor amphitheater and a central multimodal pathway for pedestrians, cyclists and skateboarders. Additionally, the design includes landscaping plans like the planting of dense trees to shield noise from traffic on the interstate. The latest milestone in the project was the submission of a 60 percent design plan for phase one construction for the city’s review. Throughout the park’s redesign process, the city has hosted various meetings and events to receive public input and feedback. In August, they hosted Party in the Park, which gave attendees a look at the project plans and an opportunity to provide feedback. “After four public community engagement events and two public surveys, the general feedback
that we have received from the surrounding community has been positive. The community is excited that we are commencing construction in the next year, considering this project has been in progress for two decades,” Bennett said. The city is also listening to concerns that community members have brought up during the meetings, most of which focus on street closures. “Some of the bigger concerns that we have received regarding the 2045 vision plan have been related to proposed street closures and stormwater ponds. The Geosyntec and Michal Van Valkenburgh Associates, Inc. team is working with Kimley Horn on a traffic study to evaluate the effects of these road closures and has considered the stormwater pond feedback in their design revisions,” Bennett said. The city plans to hold additional public meetings and workshops in the future to provide more opportunities for shared input and feedback. To learn more about the Hollice T. Williams Park Design + Expansion Project, visit the official project website at htwpensacola.com. You can also stay informed by following @htwpensacola on Facebook.■
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