Light announced this morning that they will not take plans to build a $1.3 billion stadium in St. Petersburg. The organization has provided telegrams for months to the decision. Rays insisted that after the hurricane, public funding approvals from New York City and Pinalas County were delayed, resulting in unpaid cost overruns – a responsibility of the team that was originally planned.
Not surprisingly, this decision further strained the already tense relationship between the team and local officials. St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch told reporters that he() has no interest in cooperation with the ownership group.“Add to”The bridge has been burned” (linked by Colleen Wright of the Tampa Bay Times). County Commissioner Chris Latvala also called on owner Stu Sternberg to sell the franchise.I think the best way to keep a baseball in Tampa Bay is to sell rays at Stu Sternberg,He said (linked by Sam Blum of the Movement). “This is probably one of the best stadium deals the owner has ever received in professional sports, and it’s not good enough for Stu Sternberg.transparent
It’s all in sports reports that Commissioner Rob Manfred and various owners privately urged Sternberg to sell. Team President Matt Silverman reiterated that he is not on the table at the moment. “Team not for sale,” Silverman’s Tom Krasniqi at Tampa Bay told Tampa Bay. When asked about the report that Sternberg was under pressure from the league, the team president acknowledged “Other owners are not satisfied with our income“But this implies that doing a stadium transaction will be “one The wrong error (result) continues to be an outlier among us without generating the necessary income Become a mature member of Major League Baseball.transparent
This is consistent with Sternberg’s previous comments. “If it is (for sale), people will know,The owner told the Tampa Bay Times last month. “I’ve been there all the time and I will continue to be transparent about our intentions. And it’s pretty-not pretty-but very honest with them. I’ve been there.transparent
Rays said in a statement in December that they wanted to renegotiate with cities and counties to “resolve this funding gap.” Local officials insist they will not approve more public funds. Welch said this afternoon that St. Petersburg is working with Sternberg’s ownership group. Silverman, who fits in with Ray’s previous comments, said the team was interested in continuing to discuss a new agreement (presumably more public funding).
“It won’t change our dedication to the Tampa Bay area. This won’t change our desire to figure out something. It just means that this particular project for this particular timeline won’t happen,” he told Krasniqi. He added that the rays wereWill continue to look for these conversations to the cities and counties to see how we reconnect and see if there is a solution here as we are already close. ”
Additionally, it seems they will try to have a new discussion with the city of Tampa, located in Hillsborough County. “I think we will because we have to look at all the possibilities in our area to find out one answer,Silverman said. “We didn’t have any conversations with anyone on the Tampa/Hillsboro side. We will wait until after March 31 (the official expiration date of the St. Petersburg transaction).transparent
Tampa Mayor Jane Castor issued a statement to the Tampa Bay Times, expressing the openness of the dialogue:
“I was disappointed to hear that the rays were not going to follow the stadium plan in St. Petersburg. The goal has always been to keep the team in Tampa Bay. The city, the Tampa Sports Authority and the County would be happy to talk to the team again, but any proposals must make sense for our taxpayers and our community.transparent
As the transaction in St. Petersburg collapses, there will be speculation outside the organization about the relocation. Major League Baseball said this afternoon that the league remains committed to the region. The rays will need to be approved by the league to explore opportunities outside the Tampa Bay area.
The Light will be in the 2025 season at George M. Steinbrenner Field. They hope to return to Tropicana Field in the 2026-28 season. The team’s lease on Trop was originally run in ’27, but wasn’t there for a year this season. St. Petersburg is responsible for repairing the damage to Trop, which will reportedly cost about 55.7 mm.
