ST. PETERSBURG FLA. — The Tampa Bay RaysIn partnership with a global investment and development company, they submitted a bid for the redevelopment of Tropicana Field, and the surrounding land, at the edge downtown St. Petersburg.
Friday’s announcement by the club stated that, in addition to a new baseball park, an ambitious plan for Historic Gas Plant District would include more 5,700 multi-family units and 300,000 square footage of retail. 700 hotel rooms, 600 senior living homes, and a 2,500 capacity entertainment facility.
For more than a decade, the Rays have been searching for a new place to replace Tropicana Stadium, the dome-shaped stadium that the team played in since 1998. The Rays are often near the bottom of major league attendance. The club’s lease expires 2027.
Major League Baseball recently rejected a split season proposal. It would have required the construction of new stadiums in Florida, Canada and some home games by the Rays in the Tampa Bay and Montreal areas.
Hines, a real-estate investment and development company, has joined the Rays in exploring the possibility of building a stadium downtown St. Petersburg in 2008. This plan included building on the former site of Al Lang Stadium where spring training games were played.
Rays president Matt Silverman stated that Hines has shown the ability to handle complex projects of this magnitude and size for decades. Hines has known this site for fifteen years. We know that Hines will still be there in 15 years to fulfill its vision for the Historic Gas Plant District.
Four bids were submitted to the city on Friday, including one from The Rays. The city will select a developer by January’s end.