Rays New Stadium

[soflagator]

I can see why all that slow traffic coming and going to the slowest damned game in the world is a losing cause. I have noticed it has sped up this year............it has passed paint drying as my 4th favorite activity...........

 

[GatorJ]

I’m thinking the attendance will improve temporarily due to the novelty, but what happens when that novelty wears off?

The traffic issue is no joke. I live in New Tampa, and it took me a good 2 hours+ getting back home after a matinee game (hell it takes me less time to go to Gainesville). Can’t go to as many games as I’d like, but if the alternative is the team moving to Montreal, then keep them in St Pete. Whatevs.

I live in New Tampa as well. And I’m not fighting all that traffic to go to a baseball game. I’ve lived here for 13 years. And I haven’t been to one baseball game.

If they put it at the fairgrounds, it would get all the rural city attendance, as well as Hillsborough county attendance.

 

[Fun N' Stun]

The total bill was close to 400 million which is very inexpensive today but it wasn’t in 1999 when it was approved.
The issue for me is not whether the cost is relatively low or high but why taxpayers fund a multibillion dollar industry and then toss the keys to a billion dollar owner so he garners all the profits for every use of the venue.

I know I am in the minority here but there is no justification for this at all and it gets worse each year.

I will shut up now.

You are not in the minority. I agree. This socialism needs to stop. I don't care if all of the sports teams leave tampa. Screw those moochers. Not one penny should be given to them.

 

[soflagator]

You are not in the minority. I agree. This socialism needs to stop. I don't care if all of the sports teams leave tampa. Screw those moochers. Not one penny should be given to them.

 

[LoyalGatorFan]

Actually it makes the most sense for them to move to Kansas

 

[revgator]

I lived in Tampa many years went downtown maybe once. Lived in Saint Pete until recently and was downtown almost monthly if not more. The stadium is in a great location where it's at.

I do agree with some of the other posters that the Curtis Park area or by the fairgrounds would be better and open up more opportunities for fans from the Lakeland / Orlando side.

The problem is that Tampa only has like 6 roads that actually go anywhere so wherever they put it in Tampa would be the worst possible place anyways.

 

[Born2beagator]

I lived in Tampa many years went downtown maybe once. Lived in Saint Pete until recently and was downtown almost monthly if not more. The stadium is in a great location where it's at.

I do agree with some of the other posters that the Curtis Park area or by the fairgrounds would be better and open up more opportunities for fans from the Lakeland / Orlando side.

The problem is that Tampa only has like 6 roads that actually go anywhere so wherever they put it in Tampa would be the worst possible place anyways.

Fairgrounds. It's so simple

 

[revgator]

Fairgrounds. It's so simple

I agree but then they'd probably put it right next to hard rock with no exit nearby.

 

[Born2beagator]

I agree but then they'd probably put it right next to hard rock with no exit nearby.

The hard rock is one of the reasons I want it there. Partner with it. Knock the fairgrounds down and build it right near the amphitheater

 

[pilot-in-fla]

The interesting wrinkle here is that presumably the Rays are going to contribute half the cost of the new stadium. I'm sure there are some missing pieces to the financing.

Rays press conference ducks questions about $1.3B stadium plan, looks to break ground next year

Tampa Bay Rays owner Stuart Sternberg and St. Petersburg and Pinellas County officials made their official announcement of their stadium plan yesterday, and ... oh dear, it's Marc Topkin writing it up, is it? Well, let's see if there's anything useful we can glean from his report: The financing...

www.fieldofschemes.com

 

[LoyalGatorFan]

The interesting wrinkle here is that presumably the Rays are going to contribute half the cost of the new stadium. I'm sure there are some missing pieces to the financing.

Rays press conference ducks questions about $1.3B stadium plan, looks to break ground next year

Tampa Bay Rays owner Stuart Sternberg and St. Petersburg and Pinellas County officials made their official announcement of their stadium plan yesterday, and ... oh dear, it's Marc Topkin writing it up, is it? Well, let's see if there's anything useful we can glean from his report: The financing...

www.fieldofschemes.com

Any new stadium should always be funded by the team and the league....it's simply a screwjob to the people to expect them to foot some of the bill when the vast majority didn't care about a new stadium in the first place....the Jags are getting some pushback from us residents because they are trying to make us foot some of the bill....no

 

[78]

$700 million from the Rays plus responsibility for any cost overruns, and the remaining $600 million split evenly from Pinellas County and St. Petersburg.

Associated Press:

"County officials say their share of the money will come from a bed tax largely funded by visitors that can be spent only on tourist-related and economic development expenses. St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch said bonds will be used to fund the city’s portion, with no new or increased property taxes."

 

[Hurrig8r]

Living in Trinity, just north of Tarpon Springs, it takes me nearly 1 hr to the Trop. The good new for Northern Pinellas county is, massive improvements to the North/South traffic infrastructure is soon to open us up. Northern Pinellas (Clearwater and north) has over half of the county's 1 million people, and most of the suburban wealth. Traffic woes have made the trip to ballgames a hassle for most of the people in the same county the Rays play in. US 19 is now limited access from Palm Harbor, south. The Gateway Project will tie northern Pinellas directly into the I-275 Interstate system, allowing anyone from Palm Harbor no street lights all the way to downtown St. Petersburg. What used to take 1 hr for me will be but to 30-40 minutes. Its 35 miles from me to ballpark.

 

[LaylaGator]

Just rename them the St. Pete Rays.

When Tampa gets a team, I'll go to their games.

 

[AlexDaGator]

The Tampa Bay Swallows?

Better than the Tampa Bay Spits.



Alex.

 

[Double Gator Dad]

I understand why all the teams are named “Tampa Bay” but I wish they would just name it Tampa or Sr Pete or whatever.

You would be surprised at the number of people that believe that the name of the city is Tampa Bay versus Tampa, as if to suggest that fish enjoy professional sports.