ST. PETERSBURG -- The Rays haven’t yet reached a final agreement to build a new ballpark in Tampa, but they are already imagining the possibilities their proposed “Forever Home” would offer beyond baseball.
The Rays on Monday released four new renderings of their planned $2.3 billion ballpark hosting special events: a concert, a college graduation, a sprawling volleyball tournament and a wrestling championship.
“We have said from the beginning that our new ballpark is about more than baseball,” Rays chief executive officer Ken Babby added in a statement. “A Forever Home ballpark for the Rays is about creating an economic engine for our region through a steady and vast array of special events that will drive hotel occupancy, restaurant traffic, parking revenue, airport activity and transit usage.
“In doing so, we create thousands of jobs across hospitality, entertainment, security, operations, and support services. It’s the definition of a generational opportunity for our region."
One of the ideas behind the Rays’ plan to build a massive mixed-use development on the site of Hillsborough College’s Dale Mabry campus in Tampa is that it would be a year-round destination to “work, live, learn, play,” not just a place to host 81 regular-season Major League games.
Thus, the roughly 30,000-seat ballpark would be designed with more than baseball in mind.
The Rays said the images they released Monday are “representative of the ballpark’s versatility and year-round capability to host major concerts and touring shows, graduations, championship sporting events, sports festivals, large-scale civic and community gatherings, and virtually any programming of any size.”
"One of our missions in designing the new ballpark was to solve a fundamental problem with single-purpose facilities," Babby said in a statement. "With 81 Rays games plus special events, the Forever Home will be active and generating economic value throughout the year. In short, we feel it can be one of the busiest venues in sports, entertainment and events.
“That's not just good for the Tampa Bay Rays -- it’s transformational for hotels, restaurants, parking operators, transit agencies, security companies, and many other businesses and workers throughout Tampa Bay.”
According to the Rays, the ballpark -- with work done by design lead Populous -- would double as the largest indoor event facility in the Tampa Bay region and among the largest in the state of Florida.
That would seemingly make it a prime location for the uses they highlighted in their latest round of renderings: major concerts, graduation ceremonies (for Hillsborough College and others), national youth sports festivals and signature ring sport events (wrestling, mixed martial arts, boxing, etc.).
The club also noted in a news release that the space could “accommodate qualification competitions for global athletic events.”
"We're designing this facility with intention," Babby said in a statement. "Every detail, from the club [seating area] placements to the flexibility of the seating bowl to the infrastructure supporting events, has been considered with multiple uses in mind. As important, we insist on every experience for everyone being the best in class in sports, entertainment and unique events.”
The Rays hope to open their new ballpark in time for Opening Day in 2029. In May, the City of Tampa and Hillsborough County agreed to continue their negotiations with the club by approving a non-binding memorandum of understanding that outlined the framework of a potential deal.
The team, city and county have not yet reached a funding agreement to build the ballpark. Last week, the Tampa City Council decided to delay its vote on the stadium proposal by removing a discussion and possible vote from their Aug. 20 agenda.
After several council members said they hadn’t been included in the ongoing negotiations with the city’s administration, Babby released a statement addressing the issue.
“We've had a great week, and that even includes last night at Tampa City Council when a vote that didn't go our way actually helped to underline where we need to go, and what we need to do to bring this project to reality,” Babby wrote on Friday. “I spent the morning with Councilperson Bill Carlson, who emphasized the importance of connecting with each member of the council, to better hear the views of their constituents.
“So, I am on it and will be meeting with each of them in the week ahead.”