Safer Streets for All: Doug Griffin Turns Love for Eastside into Action

Photos, interview, and graphic by Dakota Parks for Bike Pensacola

For Doug Griffin, safer streets begin with loving your neighborhood enough to advocate for it.

As a resident of Pensacola’s historic Eastside neighborhood, often dubbed “The Lost Neighborhood,” Doug’s passion for his community runs as deep as the roots of its storied past.  Nestled between the Long Hollow and East Hill neighborhoods, Eastside centers around the Martin Luther King Jr. Drive and Davis Street corridor. Once a vibrant hub for Black families, churches, and businesses during the Jim Crow era, Eastside is home to some of Pensacola’s first African American doctors, the birthplace of Daniel “Chappie” James Jr., and his mother Lillie A. James’ private school for African American children— along with other revered cultural figures.

However, Eastside’s trajectory was irreparably altered in the 1970s when the Interstate 110 extension split the neighborhood in half, displacing hundreds of families and sheltering multi-generational businesses. Across cities nationwide, U.S. highways were frequently routed through Black neighborhoods, where the land was undervalued from redlining and political resistance was limited. Today, Doug believes that ongoing structural racism has left Eastside underfunded and overlooked, resulting in a lack of the investment and infrastructure needed to keep families safe.

Doug and his wife, a Pensacola native, relocated from Houston, Texas, seven years ago to raise their blended family of 10 children, ranging in age from 27 to one and a half. As an Army veteran with a master’s degree in religious education, Doug is deeply community-oriented, using his understanding of diverse cultures to build relationships with those around him. Now a stay-at-home dad, he pours his energy into being the role model he never had growing up. Whether he's cooking meals from scratch, exploring Pensacola's parks with his kids, traveling to Houston for the rodeo, chatting with his neighbors, or simply catching up on sleep, Doug treasures every moment spent with his family.

Yet, life in Eastside comes with constant anxiety. Speeding cars race down neighborhood streets, leaving Doug on edge whenever his children step outside. A short trip to the mailbox or a walk to the E.S. Cobb Resource Center becomes an exercise in vigilance. After witnessing countless crashes and hearing the near-daily sounds of vehicles careening into yards, the family now keeps bottled water on hand to assist drivers while waiting for police to arrive.

Despite the challenges, Doug’s love for Eastside fuels his determination to see the neighborhood thrive. He dreams of safer streets, investment in infrastructure, and a community where his children—and their neighbors—can walk freely without fear.

Tell us a little about what you love so much about living in Eastside.

Doug: Our house is right behind Cobb Resource Center and about two blocks from the Chappie James Museum. The neighborhood is so diverse—gay and lesbian couples, Black and White families, older and younger residents. We have a neighbor who is 102 years old, and I stop to talk to her every time I see her.

Cobb Center is the heart of the neighborhood. My kids go there for after-school and summer programs. Older folks meet there during the day to hang out and go on group trips to the casino. It’s a gathering place that keeps the community connected, but I would never let my kids walk there alone.

What are the traffic conditions like near your home?

Doug: I call my section of Blount Street the backside of Talladega because of how fast cars fly down the road. You can hear the cars racing past at all hours of the day. It’s so bad that we don’t let our kids play in the front yard or even walk to our mailbox, because I’m afraid a car might jump the curb and hit somebody.

We sit between Ninth Avenue and Davis Highway, and it feels like there’s a crash at Davis and Blount every couple of weeks. Cars constantly run stop signs on Sixth, Seventh, and Eighth Avenues to speed across Blount, and I’ve seen reckless drivers crash into telephone poles, businesses, and front yards.

How have these traffic conditions impacted your family’s life?

Doug: We have constant accidents in the neighborhood. One time, two teenagers crossing Blount Street were sideswiped by a speeding driver. Their car spun around three or four times and landed in my neighbor’s yard. The driver jumped out and started yelling at them, even though he ran the stop sign. My wife and I stepped in to stop him from intimidating those kids. He could have killed them, and he had no right to yell at them like that. Not to mention, it traumatizes our kids to see cars crashing into yards like that.

We’re so used to hearing crashes outside that we keep bottles of water so we can go outside and give the people who are in the crash water while they wait for police and paramedics to show up. I’ll hear a crash and tell my kids, ‘Go get the water.’

Why do you think the neighborhood’s infrastructure is so unsafe for pedestrians and cyclists?

Doug: It’s neglect and disregard. The Eastside neighborhood used to thrive before the interstate was built. My wife’s grandparents lived here for nearly 70 years in a five-block radius, and they told me how vibrant it was before I-110 divided the community. That interstate murdered this neighborhood.

It’s similar to what happened in Houston’s Third Ward with the construction of Highway 288. It split Third Ward in two. When they put highways through minority neighborhoods, businesses close, residents are displaced, and the community suffers. That’s what happened here. Disregard for Black neighborhoods made it worse. Now, people still treat Eastside like it’s dangerous or rundown. They speed through as if it’s a bad neighborhood or a heavy drug area, even though it hasn’t been like that in decades. They think, ‘I don’t live there, why should I care?’

How do you see the history of systemic inequality affecting public safety and investment in the neighborhood today?

Doug: It’s systemic racism at its finest. Instead of real solutions, we get a park or a pool named after a Black person—but no investment in real safety measures or reinvestment into the community itself. Meanwhile, areas with old money or new construction, like North Hill and East Hill on either side of us, get speed bumps, dips, flashing lights and other improvements without even asking.

Gentrification is slowly creeping in and taking over the neighborhood. They’re buying up generational homes from people that don’t know the value of their homes or were lied to and misled about the value of their homes, then they raise the cost of the home 15x what those families can afford. The neighborhood was systematically neglected for a reason. We are so close to downtown, where everybody suddenly wants to live now.

Our community deserves better. It’s not that our neighbors don’t care; they just don’t know how to advocate for it. There’s a knowledge gap here.

Have you contacted the City of Pensacola or other government bodies about slowing down the cars near your home? If so, what response have you received, and do you feel your concerns are being addressed?

Doug: I’ve attended several meetings in the community, but nothing much comes from them. I called the police department a few years ago to set out the radar to see what the average speed is through the neighborhood. In between Seventh and Eighth Avenue, the highest speed recorded was 97 miles per hour—in a neighborhood with older people and young children out walking or playing.

What kinds of changes would you like to see to slow down traffic and make it safer?

Doug: We met with the mayor and our councilwoman at a town hall meeting at the Chappie James Museum, where they asked what we wanted to see in the neighborhood. Now that our councilwoman has been reelected, I’m going to keep voicing my opinion. We asked for street parking, speed bumps, bike lanes, or even just better crossings near Cobb Center. All we got was repaved streets— which just made it easier for people to drive faster. We need a lot of things, but just give us something:

• Speed bumps or road dips: Especially on Blount Street between Davis and Ninth where cars speed the most.

• Bike lanes and street parking: Adding these throughout Eastside would slow traffic down and make it safer for cyclists and pedestrians.

• Flashing stop signs at key intersections: Dangerous intersections need flashing stop signs to alert drivers to actually stop.

• Better lighting: More streetlights would improve visibility and safety.

• Sidewalks: Repaired and added to reconnect the neighborhood to make it safer to walk without having to walk in the street with speeding cars.

What would you say to local leaders or neighbors about these issues?

Doug: I’d tell them to listen to the people who live here. We’re asking for basic things: speed bumps, bike lanes, and safer crossings. These aren’t luxury items—they’re necessities to keep our families safe. I want to see people celebrate this neighborhood, learn the history, and actually introduce yourself to your neighbors when you move here. When we have block parties or BBQs, don’t call the police or report the loud music. Instead, come over and say hello and ask us what we’re celebrating. Don’t be so quick to shut us down just because you don’t understand our culture.