Four groups of investors have already responded to the call for tenders launched by the city of St. Petersburg to carry out a development project for the area where the dilapidated stadium of the Tampa Bay Rays, Tropicana Field, is currently located.
This development would obviously include a new home for the Rays and this proposal would come from the team itself in partnership with the Hines real estate group.
It’s Groundhog Day on this file, because a year ago the same process was proposed by the city’s former mayor, Rick Kriseman.
This time, the new Chief Magistrate, Ken Welch, will have the privilege of selecting a winning group in January 2023. Will this other process lead to a concrete outcome? There is reason to doubt it, considering the many disappointments generated by this project for several years already.
Recall that the Tropicana Field, like the RingCentral Coliseum, home of the Oakland Athletics, have become over time cannonballs for the two concessions, which has had the effect of multiplying rumors of a move.
Moreover, that wanting that the A’s take the road to Las Vegas is still persistent, even if a gigantic project to revitalize a sector (by the sea) of the city of Oakland is on the table.
Let’s also remember that not so long ago, a Rays joint custody project with the city of Montreal was making headlines.
The proposal made by the Rays and Hines would be of mixed use, since in addition to a brand new stadium, there would be construction of residential and commercial units, in addition to the construction of 700 units of hotel rooms.
The Hines Group has some experience in the construction of sports infrastructure. He managed the work at Petco Park, home of the Padres in San Diego.
The selection process provides for a public presentation of the four projects submitted on January 4th. The city council of St-Petersburg will have until the end of the same month to decide and determine the project selected.
Rays fans had the opportunity to dream of building a new stadium in 2009 with a project that never saw the light of day. It was the same in 2018, when the team was unable to reach an agreement with Hillsborough County for new construction.
In short, it could still be that everything is an illusion for supporters, who are more than disillusioned with this situation which continues in relation to a stadium whose lease will end in 2027.
