ST. PETERSBURG – After years of discussions, the Tampa Bay Rays introduced the group is not going to proceed with plans for a $1.3 billion stadium in St. Petersburg, Proprietor Stuart Sternberg confirmed Thursday.
Florida’s Voice beforehand reported the stadium was projected to be constructed close to the present website of Tropicana Area and was scheduled to open for the 2028 season.
Sternberg stated because the area recovers from the impacts of current hurricanes, he’s grateful for the assist of the followers and the Tampa Bay neighborhood.
He stated the group can’t transfer ahead after “cautious deliberation,” citing a “collection of occasions starting in October that nobody might have anticipated.”
“Our dedication to the vitality and success of the Rays group is unwavering,” he stated.
The group stated they are going to proceed to give attention to discovering a ballpark resolution that “serves one of the best pursuits of our area, Main League Baseball, and our group.”
In gratitude for the continued assist from our followers and neighborhood. pic.twitter.com/vVGHn6nrAA
— Tampa Bay Rays (@RaysBaseball) March 13, 2025
Town of St. Pete is advancing plans to revive the Tropicana Area for the 2026 season, Sternberg stated. Hurricane Milton reportedly closely broken Tropicana Stadium final October.
He added the group is worked up to return to the house area subsequent spring.
St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch stated the transfer a “main disappointment” however stated it was “not sudden.”
“As for the way forward for baseball in our metropolis – if within the coming months a brand new proprietor, who demonstrates a dedication to honoring their agreements and our neighborhood priorities, emerges – we’ll take into account a partnership to maintain baseball in St. Pete. However we is not going to put our metropolis’s progress on maintain as we await a collaborative and community-focused baseball associate,” he stated.
Welch made headlines final August after approving $250,000 in bonuses for 17 staff, later deemed a state statute violation, which he defended as “affordable” for key workers engaged on the Historic Fuel Plant District improvement, which included the brand new Rays ballpark.
Tampa Mayor Jane Castor stated she was “dissatisfied” the Rays will not be “following by means of” with stadium plans.
“The aim has all the time been to maintain the group in Tampa Bay. The Metropolis, Tampa Sports activities Authority & County are joyful to speak with the group once more, however any proposal has to make sense for our taxpayers & neighborhood,” Castor stated.
