City of Pensacola annexations
The City of Pensacola has expanded its city limits through annexation on multiple occasions since the original area of 9.75 square miles was laid out by Andrew Jackson in 1822.
A 1937 state law applicable only to Pensacola made large-scale annexation possible only by approval of two-thirds of city voters and two-thirds of voters within the territory to be annexed.[1] This was long considered an insurmountable obstacle to expanding the city limits. In the 1940s, proponents of annexation tried to convince residents in unincorporated areas that joining the city would lower their insurance costs. Also, at that time, homesteads valued up to $5,000 were exempt from city property taxes. Nevertheless, a November 19, 1949 referendum to annex East Pensacola Heights resulted in a 3-to-1 defeat.
Furthermore, in 1949, a push was made to incorporate the Brownsville suburb, which had at the time 8,000-10,000 residents, into its own municipality: the "City of West Pensacola." The proposed boundaries were Avery Street to the north, the Pensacola city limits to the east, Bayou Chico to the south, and the Frisco Railroad tracks to the west.[2] State Senator Philip D. Beall, Jr. introduced a bill on May 20 calling for an election to incorporate the area, but it was vetoed by Governor Fuller Warren on June 10.[3]
List of annexation petitions & referenda
Date | Area(s) to annex | Size | Residents[4] | Votes[5] | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
For | Against | ||||
November 29, 1949 | East Pensacola Heights | 173 | 531 | ||
November 10, 1953 | Granada easterly around head of Bayou Texar and Municipal Airport, south (through modern Cordova Park) to 15th Street | 2,688 acres | 160 | 73 | |
November 17, 1953 | East Pensacola Heights | 448 acres | 417 | 319 | |
February 7, 1956 | West Pensacola | 153 | 251 | ||
June 21, 1956 | Woodland Heights, Springdale and Springdale First Addition west of Carpenter's Creek | 240 acres | 16 | 0 | |
February 19, 1957 | Mallory Heights | 839 acres | 28 | 8 | |
April 23, 1957 | Highland Terrace | 462 acres | 482 registered voters | 233 | 49 |
October 8, 1957 | Fontanel Place | 110 acres | 94 | 17 | |
January 16, 1958 | West Pensacola business district (centered on Cervantes between O and V Streets) | <20 acres | petition | ||
June 3, 1958 | Area north and east of the airport | 662 acres | 4 | 0 | |
August 12, 1958 | Area east of the airport | 469 acres | 22 | 20 | |
October 21, 1958 | Scenic Hills-Gull Point area | 1,040 acres | 149 registered voters | 60 | 19 |
November 13, 1958 | Area south of Cervantes Street between Q and T Streets | petition | |||
December 9, 1958 | Warrington | 1,532 | 2,036 | ||
March 3, 1959 | Area north of Carpenter's Creek and adjacent to Springdale subdivision | 9 | 0 | ||
1959 | Section of Baars & Kirchmaier | 249 acres | |||
June 23, 1959 | Portion of Abb's subdivision | 226.2 acres | 34 | 13 | |
November 10, 1959 | Ferry Pass Heights | 485 acres | 80 | 51 | |
March 13, 1962 | Nobles, south of Dunmire | 125 acres | 33 | 6 | |
1962 | Area west of Ferry Pass Highway | 40 acres | |||
August 14, 1962 | "Old Aviation Field" south of Goulding Road and Herman Avenue and east of Palafox | 343 acres | 3,114 | 224 | 303 |
1963 | Eau Claire Estates | 100 acres | |||
March 5, 1964 | Area north of Carpenter's Creek and west of Ferry Pass Highway | 6 | 2 | ||
January 19, 1965 | Warrington, portions of Brownsville, Ensley and Brent, Ferry Pass and others | 17.2 square miles | 36,000 | 1,393 | 7,126 |
October 11, 1966 | Morris Courts | 28.7 acres | 1,100 | 73 | 38 |
October 11, 1966 | Area generally north of West Lee Street, south of Brainerd Street, east of J Street, and west of M and N Streets | 28.7 acres | 1,100 | 73 | 81 |
December 23, 1969 | Five schools: Pensacola High, Washington High, Brown-Barge Elementary, Workman Junior High and Holm Elementary | 105 acres | requested by Escambia County School Board | ||
April 23, 1970 | Portion of Abb's subdivision | 1.86 acres | petition | ||
June 7, 1971 | Area generally south of John Carroll Road, east of Beauclair Road, west of Allyn Way and north of Toni Street | 11.8 acres | over 100 | petition | |
February 25, 1982 | Three parcels near Sacred Heart Hospital | 9.165 acres | petition | ||
November 5, 1987 | Area north of College Boulevard and west of 9th Avenue | 3.145 acres | petition | ||
March 31, 1988 | Area west of Davis Highway (Pensacola Square Shopping Center) | 4.66 acres | petition | ||
June 30, 1988 | Small area south of Chablis Lane adjacent to airport | 2.04 acres | petition | ||
August 25, 1988 | Small area south of Hewitt Street | petition | |||
September 8, 1988 | Area north of Creighton Road and Keating Road | 20.24 acres | petition | ||
November 8, 1988 (article) | Cordova Mall area and areas northeast of the Airport Boulevard/9th Avenue intersection | 186 | 178 | ||
Areas around Woodchuck Avenue, Baywoods Drive, and Whisper Way | 102 | 353 | |||
September 22, 1994 | Area southwest of Hyatt and McCoy Streets | 8.094 acres | petition | ||
January 12, 1995 | Small area south of Hewitt Street | petition | |||
February 9, 1995 | Small area east of Dewrell Square | petition | |||
February 23, 1995 | South end of Alicia Drive | Requested by Habitat for Humanity | |||
March 28, 1996 | Area off Northpointe Boulevard | 8.28 acres | petition | ||
August 22, 1996 | Small area near Palafox and Hickory Streets | 1.3 acres | petition | ||
October 10, 1996 | Small area north of Royce Street, east of Davis Highway | petition | |||
August 24, 2006 | Portions of East Brent Baptist Church property and Clopton Cemetery | petition | |||
March 8, 2007 | 540 and 543 Fontaine Street | petition | |||
March 8, 2007 | East Port subdivision | 3.35 acres | petition | ||
March 22, 2007 | Small area northwest of Gadsden and T Streets | petition | |||
April 26, 2007 | Area adjacent to the airport near Sherrill Avenue | 6.645 acres | petition | ||
June 28, 2007 | 517 Selina Street and 518 East Royce Street | 1.7 acres | petition | ||
June 28, 2007 | Small portion of parcel at 6130 Walton Street | petition | |||
October 11, 2007 | Area between Interstate 110 and Village Oaks Drive | 4.41 acres | petition | ||
December 13, 2007 | Airport-owned property in 6400-6500 blocks of North 9th Avenue, adjacent to the airport | 8.6 acres | petition | ||
January 17, 2008 | Small portion of parcel at 3316 Raines Street | petition | |||
May 2008 | Areas around Baptist Hospital | Requested by Baptist Hospital |
Notes & references
- Cecil Foister. "Annexation Defeat Reason Cloudy." Pensacola News, November 29, 1967.
- ↑ "Let's Build Better City." Pensacola News. April 26, 1943.
- ↑ "Bill to Create West Pensacola City Planned." Pensacola News, April 1, 1949.
- ↑ "Governor Vetoes West Pensacola, Eight Other Bills." Pensacola News, June 11, 1949.
- ↑ At time of referendum
- ↑ Except where noted, vote tallies include only residents of areas to be annexed