Pensacola International Airport to receive $56 million in Triumph Funds

July 18,2018 was an important day for the City of Pensacola.

On that day, the Triumph Gulf Coast Board of Directors unanimously approved a $56 million grant to the City of Pensacola to allow for the development of a Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul Aviation campus at Pensacola International Airport. This is the largest amount ever awarded by the Triumph board. This grant is subject to the acquisition of additional funding to complete this transformative project, which at full employment will add nearly 2,000 high paying jobs to the City of Pensacola, Escambia County and all of northwest Florida.

The first 173,000 square foot MRO hangar at the airport recently was completed and ST Engineering, the global leader in providing MRO services, began operations on June 8 with UPS as its launch client. When fully developed, the MRO Aviation campus will include four new MRO hangars, administrative headquarters and warehouse/shop buildings, all owned by the City.

The total project cost is estimated to be just shy of $335 million and the MRO Aviation campus will have the capacity to service all wide and narrow body aircraft, such as 777’s, 737’s, A320’s and the like.

“I am very thankful to the Triumph Board for the confidence they have shown in our City by making this significant grant," Mayor Ashton Hayward said. "The creation of approximately 2,000 jobs in the aviation industry will not only will provide opportunity for families in our community for years to come, but will also be a magnet to attract talent to our great city and region.”

New stormwater treatment facility opens at Bill Gregory Park

In December 2014, the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) awarded more than $11 million from its Gulf Environment Benefit Fund to fund a series of six stormwater treatment and stream restoration projects designed to aid in the restoration of our "beautiful bayou." This was one of the projects.

Last Friday, Mayor Ashton Hayward toured the completed facility with Derrik Owens, the City's public works director.

Mayor Ashton Hayward and Public Works Director Derrik Owens

The Bill Gregory Park Regional Stormwater Treatment Facility is 37 acres near Bayou Chico. It features a two-tier treatment train system which will remove debris and floatables from the water before it enters into a wet retention pond. The pond is 2.5 acres and is now home to a variety of plants, birds and other aquatic animal species.

“I am very excited about the opening of this amazing facility,” Hayward said. ”Not only is it going to help with untreated runoff going into our waterways, but it is another amenity to our city."

The project cost just over two million dollars.

Frontier will continue added routes until early next year

Frontier Airlines announced they will be extending their flights from Pensacola International Airport to Denver and Chicago until February 13, 2019.

Frontier offers routes to both Chicago and Denver twice a week.

The flights to Denver run on Monday and Friday. Trips to Chicago fly Wednesday and Saturday.

As air service opportunities continue to grow, we strongly recommend passengers arrive at least 2 hours prior to departure time. And we are growing! This summer was another record for Pensacola International Airport.

Record summer passenger traffic. Thank you!

June was another record month for PNS with a total of 194,068 total passengers - a 19% increase compared to June of last year.

GARDEN AND GUN MAGAZINE FEATURES PENSACOLA

“The future has never looked brighter for Pensacola, Florida.”

That is the opening line in an article written in Garden and Gun magazine. The Charleston-based bimonthly publication featured Pensacola because of its premier destination for arts, entertainment and culture.

Photographer Lucy Cuneo visited Pensacola to experience it for herself. The article features downtown restaurants, the Saenger Theatre and historical homes.

You can read the article on Garden & Gun’s website. The photographer also wrote a blog post about her visit.

FERRY SERVICE RECEIVES RAVE REVIEWS ITS FIRST MONTH OF SERVICE

A month’s worth of ferry rides are officially in the books and the votes are in: people love it.

Below are some of the reviews provided to us from the superintendent of Gulf Islands National Seashore.

“Made the crossing to the island last Friday evening and returned on the 9pm Ferry. Incredibly smooth ride even in that dreaded west wind- fast and efficient. Super fun way to get on the water and enjoy our beautiful coastline while commuting. Hop on hop off all day is a steal for $20 bucks!"

“Only been open a week and seems like they have been at it for years. Awesome boats, great staff! Even sat in the pilot house with the owner and had a chat! Let my kids drive the ferry!!!!! Highly recommend.”

“There really are no words to express how much better this ferry is than driving to the beach or Fort Pickens. It's a whole new way to experience our amazing community. So worth it.”

“Fabulous! Clean and relaxing way to spend a day on the water. If the Blues are flying, it's an extra special treat, which they were that day. Loved it all! Friendly and courteous staff. Thanks for a wonderful trip.”

If you have not had the pleasure of experiencing the ferry service, you can view the schedule and book your trip by visiting http://www.pensacolabaycruises.com/.

Check your mail! Recycling information is on the way!

Be sure to check your mail this upcoming week because we sent out some valuable resources for our city-wide recycling effort.

We created a 5X7 sticker (pictured above) to be placed on your recycling bin to serve as a friendly reminder of what is and is not recyclable.

Let’s recycle right!

TRAFFIC ALERT: Barrancas Avenue will see intermittent lane closure

There will be an intermittent lane closure of Barrancas Avenue at Government Street until July 27 for construction work.

The lane closure is possible overnight, but will not happen on weekends.

INSTAGRAM: Photo of the week

Be sure to tag us using @cityofpensacola or #upsideofflorida so we see your pic!

Photo Credit @amycortell