PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — A Tampa Bay Rays on-line fan membership with greater than 25,000 members is urging the Pinellas County Board of County Commissioners to proceed with the stadium deal beforehand accredited by the fee in July.
Heather Clark, a die laborious Rays fan, is a heavily-involved member of the group.
“The financial impression of getting that sort of growth goes to be substantial, and it’s going to be long-lasting,” she mentioned.
Clark and others have been excited this previous summer time when native leaders seemingly signed off on a deal to maintain the crew in St. Petersburg long run.
Then, Hurricane Milton hit and ripped the roof off Tropicana Area.
After the crew introduced a deal to play at George M. Steinbrenner Area in Tampa through the 2025 season, some commissioners like Chris Latvala expressed frustration.
“I believe that it is unlucky,” mentioned Latvala, who represents Fee District 5, in an interview with ABC Motion Information final week.
Latvala believes the crew ought to have performed subsequent season at a minor league ballpark in Pinellas County, and he mentioned he has no proof the crew even tried to do this.
“In complete, there’s going to be over $1 billion in public funds devoted from Pinellas residents to the Tampa Bay Rays, and the thanks that the Rays gave them was to play the video games throughout the bridge in Hillsborough County,” he mentioned.
On account of the Rays’ non permanent residence in Tampa, Latvala plans to vote towards the crew’s longer-term effort to construct a brand new stadium in St. Petersburg as a part of the town of St. Pete’s Historic Fuel Plant District Redevelopment.
Whereas commissioners accredited the stadium deal in a 5-2 vote again in July, they nonetheless want commissioners to log off on the bonds required to partially fund the brand new stadium.
Latvala won’t be the one ‘no’ vote. He might doubtlessly be joined by different members of the fee, together with two lately elected. If a majority of commissioners refuse to log off on the bonds, it might jeopardize all the deal to maintain the Rays in St. Pete.
That vote might occur throughout a Tuesday assembly at 2 p.m.
“I sort of really feel prefer it’s shortsighted, and I really feel like we’ve misplaced the main target,” mentioned Clark.
Proper now, Clark and different members are working across the clock to make commissioners conscious of their ideas.
“They’re out in droves with a marketing campaign of emailing, textual content messaging, calling,” she mentioned. “It’s just about a social media blitz, I’d name it.”
She’s hoping it’s going to make a distinction in her group’s effort to maintain MLB and the Rays in Tampa Bay.
Financial institution lastly endorses Florida man’s hurricane insurance coverage verify after we shared his story
Hurricane Milton left a St. Pete man’s property underneath water. However when he went to money his insurance coverage verify, the financial institution refused to money it. Investigative Reporter Katie LaGrone shares an replace.
Financial institution lastly endorses FL’s man hurricane insurance coverage verify after we shared his story
