Local Boy Scout Gives Historic Pensacola
Locomotive New Life

Refurbishing and repainting an 84-foot-long, 588,890-pound, 107-year-old locomotive is no small feat, but that didn’t stop 17-year-old Zachary Panici from taking on the challenge as his Eagle Scout project.

two people shake hands in front of locomotive

The Tate High School graduate and Boy Scout chose to spend part of his summer fundraising, gathering volunteers and planning workdays to spruce up Engine 1355 of the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway Co., which has been resting on Garden Street since 1957.

Panici coordinated the project with the City of Pensacola Parks and Recreation Department, selecting Frisco Locomotive No. 1355 from a list of available volunteer projects in the city. Since starting the project in May, Panici has held five workdays with volunteers, logging approximately 200 hours of labor. He expects to wrap up the project by the end of the summer.

The work included scraping rust off the locomotive, cleaning and repainting the entire body, and repainting the stenciled numbers. Despite some rain, Panici and a group of Navy volunteers had a productive workday on Saturday, July 20, with Mayor Grover Robinson stopping by to thank him and the volunteers for their hard work restoring the historic landmark.

Mayor Grover Robinson recognizes Financial Services staff at the Thursday, July 18 City Council meeting for receiving the Distinguished Budget Presentation Award (left to right: Chief Financial Officer Dick Barker, Budget Analyst Mindy Miller and Budget Manager Yvette McLellan).

City of Pensacola Receives Distinguished Budget Presentation Award

The Government Finance Officers Association has awarded the Distinguished Budget Presentation Award to the City of Pensacola Financial Services Department for its Fiscal Year 2019 Budget, marking the city's 29th consecutive year receiving the award.

The award represents a significant achievement by the City of Pensacola. It reflects the commitment of the governing body and staff to meeting the highest principles of governmental budgeting. In order to receive the budget award, the city had to satisfy nationally recognized guidelines for effective budget presentation. These guidelines are designed to assess how well an entity’s budget serves as:

A policy document
A financial plan
An operations guide
A communications device

Budget documents must be rated “proficient” in all four categories, and the 14 mandatory criteria within these categories to receive the award.

Congratulations to Our Employees of the Month!

Congratulations are in order for two of our wonderful employees. Tara Spencer with Pensacola Police Department was named our June Employee of the Month. We also would like to recognize Emily Leyshon with Human Resources for being named our Employee of the Month for July. Thank you for your hard work and service to Pensacola!

Lions Park Gets New Safety Net

City of Pensacola Parks and Recreation teamed up with several volunteers and community groups to install a new safety net at Lions Park, replacing the old net that was damaged during a storm. A big thank you to Pensacola Senior Softball Association, Eager Beaver and East Hill Neighborhood Association for their help!

Heads Up! Time Change for Free Yoga Classes
Next Month

The free yoga classes offered on the first Sunday of each month will start at an earlier time for the months of August and September in an effort to beat the heat.

Please join our Parks and Recreation Department and Breathe Yoga and Wellness Center on Aug. 4 and Sept. 1 at 9 a.m. for a free workout in Community Maritime Park.

The one-hour, outdoor yoga class is open to all ages and levels of experience, and features certified instructors.

The class is free, but you will need to bring your own mat and any other accessories you would like to use. Water will be provided, but you will need to bring your own bottle or container.

For updates and other information, visit the Facebook event page.

Bay Bridge Band Coming to Blues on the Bay
Concert Series

Sit back and enjoy classic rock with a horns section as Bay Bridge Band takes the Hunter Ampitheatre stage on Sunday, July 28. It is part of our Blues Angel Music Blues on the Bay concert series at Community Maritime Park. The show starts at 6 p.m., and admission is free.

View the full Blues on the Bay concert schedule here.

INSTAGRAM: Photo of the Week

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

a photo of the palafox pier pelican statue

Photo Credit: @jessidosen

Local Boy Scout Gives Historic PensacolaLocomotive New Life