Update: The Tampa Bay Times reported that, “The Tampa Bay Rays formally asked Thursday for the right to explore new stadium sites in Pinellas and Hillsborough counties — a request that could lead to negotiations with the city for an early exit from Tropicana Field.”
In that, the Rays principal owner, Stu Sternberg, requested an amendment to the Rays contract which would allow stadium negotiations on both sides of Tampa Bay. The amendment would also give the city veto power over any final deal. Sternberg promised to hold first discussions with CityScape, the development company that recently unveiled their plans for a proposed facility within city limits in the Carilon area of St. Peterburg.
The Times also reported that, “The Rays’ proposed amendment would wipe out the city’s ability to sue anyone in Hillsborough or Pinellas County for interfering with the current contact, Wolfe said, but would maintain that threat outside those counties.” St. Peterburg Mayor, Bill Foster, noted that he needed to consult with the legal staff and City Council members before coming up with some sort of a response, one being a potential counteroffer.
A development group culled together by Darryl LeClair reveled their plans for a new Rays stadium yesterday. The development group’s proposal can be found here.
The proposed 35,000 seat stadium would sit on a 17.5 acre area of land owned by Darryl LeClair, who also organized the CityScape group and proposal. It would be fitted either with a retractable roof or a fixed window pane roof, fashioned from the tough, light plastic that covered Beijing’s Water Cube during the 2008 Olympics. Boasting steep rising stands that would keep seats close to the field, the proposed facility would also showcase beautiful views of the Tampa Bay.
The plan also includes a large amount of non-baseball related buildings which includes an attached hotel that would have rooms overlooking the field, similar to Toronto’s Rodgers Centre. The proposed stadium footprint would consume nearly half of the 17.5 acres and would be ringed by Mediterranean Revival office buildings, retail stores, apartments the aforementioned hotel that would form many of the stadium’s outside walls. LeClair’s group claims that hared construction would reduce the costs while also integrating mixed uses with the playing field “more intensively than at any major league stadium in the country.”
The group also claims that Carrilon is the best location for a stadium, adding that their research suggests the area has a shorter and less congested drive during rush hours than Channelside in downtown Tampa, the site that is most often cited as the best location for a new stadium.
“The presentation lasted two hours and was attended by city council members, the media, and Rays Vice President of Development Michael Kalt, who declined comment on whether the Rays were interested in working with the CityScape development group that used their own time and money to put the plan together,” writes Stephen Nohlgren of the Tampa Bay Times.
If construction were to begin in 2014, CityScape estimates the stadium would cost anywhere from $424 million to $570 million, including land and infrastructure. Why the discrepancy $150 million? The final cost of the stadium is also dependent on which stadium plan is adopted; open air, fixed roof, or retractable roof. The costs are consistent with the Miami Marlins stadium that opened this year.
Nohlgren also writes, “The estimates and designs are coming from architects HKS Sports & Entertainment, which helped build stadiums for the Chicago White Sox, Milwaukee Brewers and Texas Rangers, and Hunt Construction, which built the Marlins’ stadium as well as ballparks for the St. Louis Cardinals, New York Mets and Washington Nationals.”
How it would be financed is still up in the air though. The development group went out of their way to assure the public that no extra costs would be incurred upon them.
Personally, I like the plan and it’s (in the least) a good stepping stone. So friends, what do you think?