Despite county's yes vote, Tampa Rays want more money for $1.3B ballpark

The Pinellas County Commission, after two earlier delays, on Tuesday approved bonds to finance its portion of a new stadium for the Tampa Bay Rays, but an agreement to move forward on construction of the ballpark is still up in the air.

Just minutes after commissioners voted 5-2 to approve $312.5 million in bonds to pay for its share of the new $1.3 billion ballpark, the Rays issued a statement blaming the county for cost overruns and saying it wanted to renegotiate the deal it agreed to in July.

“As we have made clear, the county's delay has caused the ballpark's completion to slide into 2029,” team president Matt Silverman says in a written statement.

“As a result, the cost of the project has increased significantly, and we cannot absorb this increase alone. When the county and city wish to engage, we remain ready to solve this funding gap together.”

The move may kill a deal that has been on the brink of collapse since Oct. 29 when the county, dealing with the aftermath of Hurricane Milton, postponed a planned vote on the issuing of bonds. A second delay followed Nov. 19.

This happened as the team learned it would not play at Tropicana Field in 2025, and possibly longer, because of hurricane damage to the stadium. The move, the team said, cuts its revenue which along with the delays to the start of construction make building the stadium financially unfeasible.

Stopping work on the project and moving to another city were options, it said.

(The team as part of the agreement approved in July committed to pay $600 million for the new ballpark and assume all cost overruns.)

What makes the team’s stand Tuesday even more surprising to some is that both St. Petersburg’s Mayor Ken Welch and City Council members as well as county commissioners and staff have been adamant that they would put no more money into the stadium deal agreed to in July.

But it’s not just the stadium that’s at risk.

The Ray’s stance Tuesday also calls into question what happens with the redevelopment of the Historic Gas Plant District, a Black neighborhood razed in the 1990s to make way for Tropicana Field.

The massive 8 million-square-foot multiuse development is expected to deliver more than 5,400 residential units; 1,250 workforce and attainable housing units; 1.4 million square feet of office and medical space; 750,000 square feet of retail space; 750 hotel rooms; and 14 acres of parks and open space. This along with the Woodson African American Museum of Florida and an amphitheater.

The Rays statement Tuesday evening overshadowed what had been a largely productive public hearing on the matter Tuesday.

Right before the vote was cast, board chair Kathleen Peters praised her fellow commissioners, even those who voted against issuing the bonds, and staff members for their work.

“What I am happiest most is today we made a decision to let the world know that we're still great collaborative partners, and that was my biggest concern,” she says.

“If this did not go through, we would be sending a message that we were not good collaborative partners around the nation. And we are. We're really great at collaborating and this is just going to be one more example.”

But, as if foreshadowing what would happen next, she followed the warm feelings with a warning:

“Hopefully, all of the partners in this collaboration are going to be good partners, and they're all going to keep all the toys in the sandbox, and they're not going to take any and go home.”

What happens next is anyone’s guess, and there are more questions now than ever in this process. Will the county and city sue? Is the team bluffing? Will the localities renegotiate? Will the team keep the land for the Gas Plant redevelopment?

One commissioner, though, knows what outcome he is hoping for.

Chris Latvala, who represents District 5 and voted with the majority Tuesday, says he met with Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred last week.

Manfred expressed his desire for the Rays to remain in St. Petersburg Latvala says. He says Manfred is an ally “when the owner of this franchise has, for some reason, decided to become an adversary.”

“I hope our vote today helps set the wheels in motion for a new owner and a new era of Tampa Bay Rays baseball,” he says. “Rays fans deserve to have our own (Tampa Bay Lightning owner Jeff) Vinick, (New York Yankees owner Hal) Steinbrenner, (Tampa Bay Buccaneers owners) Glazer (family) or (Philadelphia Phillies owner John) Middleton who cares as much about the fans and community as his own.

“Bottom line, I believe Commissioner Manfred’s eyes are now wide open to the reality of our penny pitching, double dealing ownership.”