Planning board approves final aesthetic review for Reverb by Hard Rock project at Community Maritime Park

The City of Pensacola Planning Board on June 10 unanimously approved final aesthetic review for a combined mass‑timber residential tower and Reverb by Hard Rock hotel at Lot 5 of the Community Maritime Park.

Applicant Inspired Communities of Florida and design firm Gensler presented revised materials, site plans and renderings showing changes requested at an earlier conceptual review in March. Staff said the Waterfront Redevelopment District (WRD‑1) requires planning‑board aesthetic review for projects on the park, and the proposal uses the Florida Live Local Act to allow increased height (up to the statutory maximum permitted under the act) and higher density in exchange for affordable housing provisions.

The project as presented includes a hotel (Reverb brand) and a residential building called Rhythm Lofts, a shared podium with three levels of above‑grade parking, and a public plaza that aligns with the baseball stadium entry. Designers said they removed subterranean parking, raising the podium so the plaza is roughly 32 feet above sidewalk level, and reworked the De Villiers Street frontage to add five “pop‑down” retail spaces (about 250–400 square feet each), a meandering sidewalk, permeable pavers and bioswale planting areas to improve street activation and stormwater handling. The team emphasized that permeable surfaces and a planned connection tie into the park’s existing stormwater system.

Materials shown include a dark slate EIFS and masonry palette for the hotel tower, and a mottled gray masonry and rainscreen/EIFS combination for the residential tower. The north end wall of the hotel was presented as a space for changing artwork; the team said the option of a digital screen is under consideration but would be limited to non‑commercial art (no advertising). The display shown in renderings is roughly 30 feet wide by 70 feet tall, the applicant said.

Board members asked about resiliency, flood elevation, parking access, retail servicing, bike storage, and stormwater management. Designers said elevators will provide public vertical access from the sidewalk level to the plaza; the residential bike room remains for tenant storage and is not public; hotel rooftop amenity spaces and pool will be open to hotel guests and the rooftop amenity is intended to be visible from the park. Staff and the applicant said the project will tie into an existing, city‑wide stormwater system for Maritime Park and include bioswales and permeable pavers as on‑site measures.

A nearby resident and Tanyard Neighborhood Community Association representative, Jay Baines, spoke during public comment to urge continued outreach and raised concerns about construction traffic and timing. Applicant representatives said they had presented previously to neighborhood groups and acknowledged continuing outreach efforts.

After discussion, Planning Board member Villegas moved to approve the final aesthetic review as presented; the motion carried unanimously.

This project received a 5–0 conceptual approval from the planning board in March 2025 and will return for separate abbreviated reviews for signage and murals as required by city procedures.