Gilliam briefs Beach Optimists on lawsuit
BY MARY CLAUS Special to the News

The first June meeting of the Pensacola Beach Optimist Club (PBOC) was held June 5 at the Beach Community Church sanctuary and dozens of club members and nonmember island residents made a point to attend.

Tom Gilliam, the featured speaker is with the attorney group of Shell, Fleming, Davis & Menge, which is the law firm representing the beach residents in the property tax lawsuit. Those in attendance, including Lt. Governor of the Northwest Optimist District, CV Lindsay, all said they learned something new about the issue. Gilliam gave an outstanding account of the history of these types of lawsuits in our area, which historically have been ruled in favor of island businesses and residents, as the land on Pensacola Beach is not owned, but, rather, leased.

Although the commercial portion of this latest suit has gone down in favor of taxing island businesses for the county owned land on which they are located, the appeal is in the works, according to Gilliam. "Since this has been brought up in the past, and non-taxation of leased land was upheld in prior suits, there is no real way the issue should be coming up again and again once it has been ruled upon before, in favor of island businesses and residents," he stated. Gilliam added that the Pensacola Beach land lease contracts do not provide for automatic renewal and there is no provision which gives those leasing land any option whatsoever to purchase the land at any point in the future. He explained that this is what sets Pensacola Beach apart from the Navarre Beach, as Navarre Beach land leases are written entirely different with various options for automatic renewals or options to purchase.

Gilliam tried to give island home owners some hope and told the group, many of whom have land leases which state no property tax shall ever be levied on the land as it is leased out by and owned by Escambia County, that the case is not over and they should not give up yet. He also indicated that it would be several months until the residential part of the suit comes up for consideration and the appeal decision of the commercial suit may reflect upon the residential portion's chance of success or failure.

"Everyone came away from Gilliam's presentation with something new they'd learned," said Club President, Joe Woodall.