It’s not a matter of if the Devil Rays ask for a new stadium. It’s a matter of when.
It’s not too early to consider the questions that must be answered long before the groundbreaking: Who should pay for it and how should it be financed? Where should it be? Does The Tampa Tribune’s vision of a Bay area major-league stadium capture the essence of the region, or should it look different?
The question of where the funding will come from is not a topic that I want to touch. Perhaps we can get lucky and someone will offer a sponsorship after the seeing the plans but that’s really touchy and I would hate to ruin a great Friday by arguing the city’s money.
As for where the Stadium should be built, I really like the I-75 and I-4 location. It would be easy (or easier) access for those who want to come from Central and E. FL. I drive out to see the Magic from Tampa. It’s worth an hour and change but I wouldn’t make the 2+ hour drive. That is how long it would take Central Floridians to get to St. Pete. The area near I-75 and I-4 could host commuters from C. FL, Pasco County, Polk, Hillsborough and Pinellas w/o much hastle. The thought of commuting to St. Pete is a real turn off. We all hate going over the bridge.
As an added bonus, this will be the least expensive of the 5 noted in the article.
There are pros and cons to all locations, however I don’t believe there are bigger pros that being able to reach out and make the stadium accessible to more fans. With all of the growth in the rural parts of Pasco, Hillsborough and Polk Counties, there should be a centralized location to where we can hit all geographic locations.
I believe near Al Lopez would be a good location if the roads were better. Dale Mabry or Himes between Kennedy and MLK is crazy at rush hour every day and it’s rediculous on Bucs game days. Imagine those 2 combined with 7pm weeknight games. The Rays will not draw a Bucs crowd, however the thought of rush hour traffic with an event at the same time is too much. It’s ok maybe once a week for USF football or Monster Trucks at Ray J. Once in a blue is manageable, but the thought of 3-4 days a week is too much.
RM
The design looks tremendous, but being a Tampa-centric design (Ybor inspired facade, the UT minarets) it needs to be in Tampa. Also the population center of the region is Tampa, so any Pinellas plans should be thrown out the window. (Isn’t there an article today about 20,000 homes being built in SE Hillsborough?)
I understand part of the exercise is to find public land and build on that, but I’d imagine that the City and Hillsborough could find something in Ybor or downtown for a ball park. Use existing garages there, and blend the park into the neighborhood (like San Diego’s Petco Park). But, a good job by the Trib to step up and offer an idea. Even if the Rays stay bad, they would still draw better at Al Lopez, I-4/75 or downtown/Ybor than in St. Pete.
I hope if and when the Rays do design a new ballpark they hire whoever designed this one for the Tribune. This would be a wonderful place to watch a ball game. As far as location, something on the edge of the Ybor City area, perhaps near the old train station would be great with a view opening out on downtown Tampa. I drive by this area on my way to work every morning on the new elvevated portion of the Crosstown and have often thought it would be a great location for a baseball stadium. If it’s in St. Pete, the current location of Al Lang Field (it’s still Al Lang to me) is the only spot that should be considered with a view of the water. A ballpark belongs in a downtown setting, not near Raymond James Stadium or east of town by the intersection of I-75 and I-4.
The only problem with all of this is that this great stadium would still be 3/4 empty with the awful play we continue witness day in and day out from this team.
only thing i can say bout what i just saw here is build it..beautiful stadium design, advertise this and see if investors are willing to invest,also owner should suffer the loss in tropicana field for now and he would make up for it in future with more attendance at a newer and better located park
the type of stadium and location doesn’t matter if the Rays put a winning product on the field. The Tampa Bay area is a bandwagon place. Look at how Tampa Stadium was empty until the Bucs started winning, look at the Lightning, and even the storm.
Personally i like the dome. It is cool inside and I can go to a game and not leave all sweaty and disgusting. The only change I would make there is for you to be able to see what is going on from the concourse. People want a retractable dome but what they fail to realize is that if it is a typical humid day you can’t simply close the dome and have it all comfortable. It will take HOURS IF NOT DAYS to remove the humidity from a building that size.
The simple fact is no matter where the stadium is, people will complain. No matter what type of stadium we have people will complain. However, once a winning product is on the field none of that will matter. The stadium will be filled to capacity with people who will tell you “I’ve been a Devil Rays fan since the very first game. I remember coming to games and the place would be empty” In the meantime they will have all their gear for the Yankees, Red Sox, or whoever won the series a year or two ago tucked away at home in their closet for the next time one of those teams are in first place.
Sorry folks, but I can’t even fathom how this what if scenario came up. A new home for the Rays? You’ve gotta be kidding! How about you get real there at the Tribune and keep on the owners butts to invest a lot more money into this minor league teams payroll. I’d love to see this new stadium dream brought up again AFTER the Rays have become a MLB team.
The topic is a good one and should be discussed now. To me, the choice is obvious - the stadium belongs in downtown Tampa. Mass transit is a great concept, but only works when you start to centralize major destinations. With the Ice Palace/Forum hosting 40+ hockey games a year (along with many other concerts, etc.) and a baseball stadium hosting 81 games a year in almost the exact opposite half of the year, all of a sudden you have year round activity in a centralized location. The mass transit/light rail crowd should be behind this location. All of your other locations are near no other major attractions and would create different traffic problems.
Besides that angle, downtown Tampa would capture the working crowd, allowing restaurants to fill up after work and prior to games. Workers could park at 8 a.m. and leave town at 10 p.m. Mid-day games on getaway days would be a great for an extended lunch crowd. Downtown does in fact have room just north of the expressway in the land of remote parking lots.
Mayor Iorio, spend your Riverwalk dollars on something that will actually get used. Push this project.
One last minor point on the stadium design - make your sideline/outfield seats actually face the batter, not the left or right fielder. This is one of Tropicana’s great flaws.
Build it and they still will NOT come to the ballpark
Until the ownership spends more money acquires some veteran players we will remain a team with SOME talent but going nowhere fast.
We have 4 started batting less then 225 4 pitchers with ERA’S above 7.00 and a bullpen that has just lost there closer for 2 weeks. But then again if the losing continues we don’t need a closer. But heck maybe we will have a nice stadium.....
you need a place where top players would want to come and play,take the tigers for example after a couple yrs in the new park the were able to draw top players and look where they stand now,who wants to play in a can thats already outdated
I agree w/ Mish. The Tigers are a perfect example. Yes, they’ve added some great ball players in addition to the new stadium, but a new ballpark attracts fans and national publicity. Given a new stadium, our city may even be worthy of an All-Star Game one year. Who wants to come to the Trop? We go because we support our team, and that’s it. I’ve visited Stadiums just to visit them and because I’ve felt that they were worth seeing. If we can attract fans by other means than just a team, especially if they suck, then it would be worth it. “Dress for Success” may be a term that some could use. We’ve got to start somewhere.
you need a place where top players would want to come and play,take the tigers for example after a couple yrs in the new park the were able to draw top players and look where they stand now,who wants to play in a can thats already outdated
Players want to play for two reasons, these days...1) $$$, 2) The chance to win. Neither of which is in the Devil Rays operating manual.
The new stadium has nothing to do with the fans coming out to the ballpark in Detroit. Detroit is a baseball town, and drew well in old Tiger Stadium...what’s happened in Detroit is that great pitching has given them the chance to win every night....and that, in turn, has lured players that can offer a better chance at winning.
I live in Manatee County (one of the fastest growing areas in America). The location of Tropicana Field is very convenient. Tampa is not the center of the universe. If a new stadium is built in Tampa, they may lose business because people from counties such as Manatee won’t be willing to drive to Tampa for a Devil Rays game. I believe that when they demolish Progress Energy Park, a state of the art stadium, similar to that of AT&T Park in San Francisco should be built so that it will be directly on the water so when home run is hit, the ball goes into the bay. Tampa has the Buccaneers, Lightning, and Storm. Let St. Petersburg have the Devil Rays. After all, the teams are called “Tampa Bay” not “Tampa” and last I checked, St. Petersburg is in the Tampa Bay Area. A survey should be created to find out where usual fans (not the ones who only go to Yankees / Red Sox games) come from.
Your design is fantastic and exactly what should have been done in the first place. St. Petersburg is just too far West - discouraging folks from East Hillsborough, Polk and Orlando from making the trip. Tropicana Field was outdated the day it opened. Too bad that it was pushed through only to benefit the City of St. Petersburg - leaving the fans to deal with a very inconvenient location.
I have a great location for this new ballpark. How about Las Vegas, because that is where the Rays are going to end up. The public around will not fund another playground for another billionaire. Didn’t we learn from Tampa Stadium? Yes, I called it Tampa Stadium, I refuse to call it the name that was bought. All this is is a pipedream. What next? The Rays are going to contend for a WS. People lay off the drugs and get with the rest of us. The attendence will not improve until the team improves.
