mlmintampa - 06 July 2007 11:13 AM

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 get so tired of hearing people complain that they have to drive across the bridge to get to a Devil Rays game. I live in Clearwater and I have to drive over the bridge everytime I want to go to a Lightening, Storm or Bucs game. Its TAMPA BAY NOT TAMPA! The fact is if the team and staduim were upgraded people would drive the distance to see them. If the current Devil Rays team played in Tampa the attendance would be the same. Im originally from one of the greatest baseball cities in the country in St.Louis. Just about every game is sold out and no one lives near the stadium. It takes most people 45minutes to an hour to get the the ball park. The arguement of “its too far” is a sorry reason. The team isnt good and Tampa Bay residents arent knowledgable in sports and are front runners. Al Lopez park is a horrible idea due to traffic. The best is Progress energy park site. Have the stadium focus on the tropical and beach aspects of the area and have the stadium overlooking the bay. Downtown St. Pete is full of resturants, bars and shops, unlike the ghost down that is Tampa.

If any idea in Tampa would be ideal would be downtown near channelside and the Forum. Baseball stadiums need to be in a downtown enviroment. Maybe a stadium in downtown Tampa would bring life to it.

Im not against a Tampa based stadium. Just tired of the cry baby Tampa residnents.

I’m just wondering why the Trib even cares about about the Rays when they’re the “unofficial” newspaper of the Yankmees?

Also, doesn’t everyone remember that the team management was planning on changing the team name, logo, and colors last year and are still pursuing that concept.  This stadium is under the influence of the “Devil Rays” name.

I only need to know - WHY?  Why build a new stadium for a losing team?  Why even think that it HAS to be in Hillsborough County.  You’ve got the Yankers, you don’t need another team.  Leave them be.  The absolute best thing that could happen to the Devil Rays is to let them become a National League team.  They will never amount to anything as long as they are in the same division as the Yankers and the Red Sox.  It is so sad when those two teams come to St. Pete to play and the crowd is overwhelming for them and not the Rays.  So much for hometown fan support.  If you people love the Yankers and the Sox so much, please go back to where you came from.

If you just have to build a new stadium in YOUR county build it for the Marlins.  Miami is never going to build one for them.  They would probably appreciate it and it wouldn’t interfere with your beloved Yankers.

kool.. new stadium… just as long as the cost does not come from the taxpayers or tax money.. should come from ticket sales.. not everyone will go to the games or watch them on tv.. so,not everyone should have to pay for the stadium..

You did not give us the one option that would make sense for where the Rays should play.  They should build the new park about 100 miles in the gulf of Mexico so the can be with the rest of the fish.  O by the way, they can share the gulf with the Marlins. 

All fun aside, the prospect of building a new stadium anywhere is propostrous.  This team will not survive another five years.  Baseball cannot and will let the Rays or the Marlins exist much longer.  Both of these teams are big money losers and cost other teams additional profit sharing from the League.  So the league will either move them or cut back the number of teams which they really need to do anyway because the talent pool is extremely weak.

Hmm, let’s see...we built Tropicana Field and let it sit until we even HAD a team.  Now this team wants a NEW ballpark????  Couldn’t vote in the poll because my choice - some other city - wasn’t an option.

Yes,I have a idea..
save the money for more important things, like fixing the medical care problems and the homeless..
wanting to spend a billion bucks on a stadium instead of homeless people and health care shows where your prorites and compassion and humanity are.. sounds like if there were to be a auto accident and the driver and his dog were seriously injured,you would have a hard time fiquring out which one to save…

The old saying “If you Build it They will Come,” I know that people dont want it to move from St Pete or some want it by Raymond James and some want it on I4 and I 75. I like the I4 and 75 but they might as well build it at the Florida Fairgrounds. Its across the road from the Hardrock and right next to The Ford Amphitheater. People will drive from Orlando, Lakeland, Sarasota/ Bradenton, Ocala, Gainesville, and all over the 2 hour circle but nobody wants to have to drive through or around downtown Tampa and then St Pete to go to a game. The only good thing about the Trop is that they arent charging for parking. I live in Brandon but that has no bearing on where I want the Stadium. I have been to 5 games this year. Leaving at 5pm to drive through downtown Tampa and then hit traffic in St Pete also gets tiring. One person said that They live In Manatee County and St Pete is a great location but Lets add another three cities that Might pool another 2 million people into viewership. Orlando to St Pete is 110,Orlando to I4 and 75 is 75miles, Ocala 90,Lakeland 25, Sarasota 60, Bradenton 45, basically shortening the trip by 30 miles and not driving through two cities. St Pete is a winter community with residents and is dead in the summertime.  Its worth it I know some may be upset but the 9,500 people I saw as an average attendance during the games I went to Im sure its worth the move.

I find it pretty hard to fathom building a $500 million + stadium for a baseball team that’s in last place in the standings - in all of MLB. And I’m a Rays fan. I’ve attended 3 games this season, and cheered loudly for the team. And they even won one of those games.

I’m willing to agree that the design/aesthetics/accommodations of a stadium at least marginally improve attendance numbers, but this is Tampa, not Boston. The Bay area is not overflowing with rabid baseball fanatics like it is football fans (which I find surprising given how awful the Bucs are.) Or they just refuse to become Rays fans. It’s more than likely due to the transient nature of the area, with a large percentage of people who remain loyal to their birth state/home team. So I think that’s the number one issue that needs to be tackled right now.

The ad firm handling the marketing for the Rays franchise does a piss-poor job at promoting attendance and loyalty. Plus, they somehow manage to portray the Rays as a cheesy, down-market, only slightly better than minor league baseball franchise. The brand certainly doesn’t have the timeless, classic feel that the Yankees or White Sox franchises carry so well. Also, the team just needs to learn to play more consistently. But that goes without saying.

I’ll admit that I do actually like the design the Tribune cooked up, although the more I think about it the less I like it. Incorporating historic Ybor architecture seems like a great idea until you think about Centro Ybor . It attempted to do the same thing, and then filled it’s space with a generic movie theater and mall-like shopping and dining areas, none of which promote the history of the city. So, why do you want to replicate the same idea and fill it with overpriced food and generic merchandise?

As for location, none of the Hillsborough locations work in my opinion. I can understand the appeal to being next to Raymond James (it works fairly well for the O’s/Ravens in my hometown) but Dale Mabry is a nightmare and the only advantage for long-distance fans is that it’s situated fairly close to I-275. Maybe you guys don’t drive on that part of I-275 during rush hour, but I can tell you from experience that it’s a less than ideal stretch of highway. Another stadium in that area is only going to make it that much worse. And don’t get me started on the I-4/I-75 location. That just screams, “Hey everybody, let’s continue to promote suburban sprawl!”

No, the stadium needs to stay in downtown/central St. Pete. And I’m not just saying that because I just recently bought a house there. But it is a city that Tampa could learn a thing or two from. Tropicana Field is a decent location from downtown, within walking distance, and from what I see the businesses in the area seem to do pretty well after a game lets out. The Grand Central area is starting to pick up, and residential is moving in. And the city manages the traffic flow and parking for the games reasonably well. For now.

The Tribune is certainly on to something, but Tampa needs to learn how to share. Sure, you can argue that St. Pete is inconvenient to our neighbors in Orlando, but it certainly isn’t to everyone down in Bradenton /Sarasota and so on. A new stadium is inevitable, but we have a lot of other things we need to fix before that happens, like improving our city centers and mass transit. While you’re sitting still on I-275 12 miles from Dale Mabry grinding your teeth, try not to think too hard about how much nicer it would have been to hop on a clean, reliable train and arrive in just minutes right in front of the all new Tropicana Field, home to the Series-winning Devil Rays.

I strongly believe the Devil Rays new home should be across the street from AL Lopez park.

As an HCC student, I drive by the Raymond James Stadium parking lot every weekday. I believe its a perfect spot for the Devil Rays to play. I was really surprised when I saw the picture of the stadium on the front page of the tribune. I imagined the stadium being that for the past 5 years and I’m glad that this issue is being discussed. This stadium would be perfect there for plenty of different reasons.....

1. Parking - To my knowledge, there is 5 prime places to park if the stadium is there. (1) Al Lopez park. (2) Across the street of Raymond James Stadium. (3) HCC. (4) The New Bucs training facility. (5) Legends Field. People could also park in the K-mart parking lot and walk. Also, don’t forget the people that live in the neighborhood that would charge 10-15 dollars for parking....

2. Attendance - The game against the Kansas City Royals (7/7/07) had 20,000 people and look at their record. You’d think they were playing the Yankees or something. If you put that stadium next to Al Lopez park. We would average at least 20-30 thousand every night. Even more if its against the Yankees, Red Sox, Marlins or Braves or if its a prime pitching matchup, such as David Price vs Josh Beckett or Scott Kazmir vs C.C. Sabathia or something. You may not know this, but HCC (hillsborough community college) is currently developing housing for students behind the school. I know for a fact that 90% (if not more) would show up every Friday night for “5 dollar beer night”. Thats a cool 4 to 5 thousand right there. If the ticket prices are the same as they are now, everybody in the neighborhood’ss would walk over too.

3. Location - Tropicana field is a nice stadium, don’t get me wrong, however I’m not driving to St. Pete for a 7 o’clock game. Mainly because I hate driving back on the Howard Franklin bridge at 11:00 at night. Safety and arriving home at 12:00 to get up at 7:00 are the reasons why I only go to 1 Devil Ray game a season. I live just over the hillsborough river and I would be happy to take a taxi down to the “Al Lopez park stadium” and walk home. I would go to at least 40 Devil Ray games every season and I guarantee you that I’m not the only person out there.

I know that funding is a big issue but when people see how beautiful the stadium is ... it won’t matter. Actually, I know I’m kidding myself, money is a huge issue when it comes to building a stadium there. I remember all the fuss when it came to building Raymond James Stadium but I believe the crys will go away over time. I like the stadium that the Tampa tribune has posted in the paper, however, I believe if we modeled a stadium after “Turner Field” (Atlanta Braves) instead of a dome.. we would have favorable turnouts. Thanks for listening to my views. I hope the stadium is built there. Thanks. Peace

OK people stop with the whole “ If we had a better team, people would go to the games.” AHHH No!!  try this one on for size, if we had a newer stadium, that wasnt “depressing” to watch a ball game at, then yeah it would be exciting to go watch our team play other cities here in tampa. Im sick of you pre-madonas that think only a winning ball team brings in a crowd. remeber the bucs 4-12 season last year, oh yeah thats right sold out every game, why is that you say, uhh yeah true fans my friends! and a killer stadium to watch it in.... ask any one in Cleaveland or San Diego why they go to their baseball teams games, and those two teams arent too hot at the moment, they go because they are FANS OF BASEBALL!!  Not fareweather fans!!!  a centrally located ball park near or around Ramond James would bring in the Latin fans as well, they pack in the Yankee’s training facility, and we all know the Latinos are bigger fans of baseball than American football. Yes i dont go to any Ray’s games due to the fact that its in St. Pete, and i live in north Tampa. The Trop, is a crappy place to watch baseball in my opinion. If they had that stadium that I saw in the newspaper, i would attend more games, EVEN IF OUR BASEBALL TEAM STINKS! i would go to watch baseball!! they are our team.. And yes the team in my opinion should be in Hillsborough county, especially with the design that you guys came up with. Hey the Glazers used the half cent sales tax on restaurants in the bay area, lets do it again!! We have won Championships in all catagories of sports in this town, its time for the Rays to “step up to the plate” A new stadium would make me feel proud for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, and im not on their payroll..

Issue No. 1- Is Tropicana Field an acceptable venue for a baseball game?  Absolutely not!
Here’s the heart of the matter. Baseball is an outdoor sport, period. Have franchises compromised this principle? Yes, but out of 30 franchises, 5 cities have indoor/outdoor baseball, and only 2 have completely indoor baseball, Tampa and Minnesota. Minnesota is now building an outdoor stadium, leaving Tampa with the only totally indoor facility. Minnesota learned their lesson and so will the Rays. Going to a Rays game is equivilent to watching it on TV. There are no elements involved. It’s nice and cool, just like home. So why leave the house? I hear many say they like being insulated from the heat and the rain in the Trop, but the trade off is that they’ve lost the true essence of the game. Nature! The sky and a baseball traveling deep into it. The wind blowing, reaking havoc with the flight of the ball. The sun, that which shines down and illuminates the green grass. There is nothing like a game in an outdoor ballpark.
In my first game I ever saw, Pittsburgh @ Atlanta in 1981, Omar Moreno, a speedy stick of a man hit a ball high into the sky and I beleived it to be a home run because it went so high and far. He flied out to mid center field but the sight of the ball travelling so high in the blue sky never left me. When a ball goes up in the Trop, the backdrop is a roof. Sometimes it hits the roof structure. Not good. I used to go to Philly to watch National League baseball and I remember sitting through rain on several occasions and having the best time. I fondly remember those times. I easily forget games at the Trop. That’s because its not natural to play indoors and I probably want to forget.
I understand the economics of rainouts and I am sympathetic to that. That’s why I think the model put forth by the Tribune is a reasonable compromise. Their model is very similar to Milwaukee’s Miller Park, which I personally do not like. Out of all the roofed stadiums, I like Seattle’s best because it still looks like an outdoor stadium when the roof is open. Some, like Milwaukee, open the roof, but it still feels like its indoors. The key is that the roof must clear totally away as not to cast roof shadows all over the field and allow total natural light. It should feel like a stadium, not a planetarium.
For those who swear by the Trop, you will either fall in love with a real stadium or you’re really not a true baseball fan. It’s time to consider younger viewers and not old people dealing with the heat. Just to let you know, it gets hotter in places like baltimore and Philly than it does here and they handle it ok. The rain can be an issue sometimes, but it generally rains for an hour and stops in the late afternoon, meaning that you’re likely to get wet going from your car to the stadium. The last time I went to see the Rays, I got soaked going in and then got to freeze inside the Trop. That stunk!
I’m for putting the stadium in Tampa and getting rid of the damn Yankees. Much of this area still supports the Yanks and if we want to have a successful franchise, we need to eliminate the competition as best we can. Tampa is commonly referred to as NY-south.
If Tampa were to be the location, it would put an impetus on improving the traffic issues, just what Tampa needs.
Let’s drop the Trop, tank the Yanks and accept the climate in which we live. Sorry, St. Pete but you old curmudgeons don’t like all these darn whippersnappers in your town anyway. We’ll all be happier.

I think I-4 and I-75 would be a great location.

Bottom line:  If you want to draw people from Orlando and Lakeland, it has to be easy for them to come. 

If the tax payers shoulder the burden of a multi-million dollar, new state-of-the-art ballpark, I sure hope that Disney doesn’t decide to get into Major League Baseball for a few years!

You’re missing the boat on locations.  THE location is DERBY LANE.  It is convenient to Tampa, and not too far for the Manatee folks.  By the time we are ready for a new park, dog racing will be passe (it’s already moribund), and they can build a poker facility for Derby Lane, which is what their future really is!  The site is big enough, and perfectly located.