CLEARWATER, Fla. (AP) — The Tampa Bay Rays have the government backing they need to build a long-sought-after ballpark after the Pinellas County
Pinellas County Commissioner Rene Flowers attends a meeting of the Pinellas County commissioners on Tuesday, July 30, 2024, in Clearwater, Fla., where they voted for funding for a new Tampa Bay Rays ballpark. CLEARWATER, Fla. — The Tampa Bay Rays have the government backing they need to build a long-sought-after ballpark after the Pinellas County Commissioners approved on Tuesday the west-central Florida county’s share of the funding for the 30,000-seat stadium.
“This is so much more than a baseball stadium. It is poised to become, if we do it right, a world-class tourist destination,” said Commissioner Janet Long. “It’s more than about the baseball stadium. It’s a transformational, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” The site, where the Rays’ domed, tilted Tropicana Field and its expansive parking lots now sit, was once a thriving Black community displaced by construction of the ballpark and an interstate highway. St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch says one of his priorities is to right some of those past wrongs in what is known as the Historic Gas Plant District.
A citizen group called No Home Run and other organizations opposed the deal, with the conservative/libertarian Americans for Prosperity contending the track record for other publicly financed sports stadiums is not encouraging.
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Florida county approves deal to build a new Tampa Bay Rays stadiumThe Tampa Bay Rays have the government backing the team needs to build a long-sought-after ballpark. The Pinellas County Commissioners approved on Tuesday the west-central Florida county's share of the funding for the 30,000-seat stadium. The deal will guarantee the team stays put for at least 30 years.
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