Understandably the Devil Rays have put a shabby team on the field during their existence, but to say that a new stadium would have no impact is ludicrous. The stadium is hidden in st petersburg and even the most avid fans can’t go to as many games as they would like. St. Petersburg is a ridiculous place for a stadium since its population is centered around retirees and vacationers. Relocating the devil rays to a tampa stadium would garner increased interest in the team as a more youthful following would emerge. Believe it or not, most people don’t go to baseball games to watch baseball, they go to enjoy a night out and hopefully good baseball is played. However, people don’t enjoy nights out when they have to drive thirty minutes and sit in a dead quiet room with a few thousand other people. A good example of the possibilities are the Pirates, who have been worse than the devil rays for longer. Recently they moved into a new stadium and continually draw 30,000 or more people per game. That should efficiently nullify the argument that people won’t come if the talent doesn’t improve. The new location and new stadium would draw more people and you just hope that ten years of high draft picks can eventually yield a servicable team. The devil rays need to focus on giving fans a decent experience instead of trying to convince them that the team will win at some point.
i agree with everything you said which is exactly why it should be in downtown st. petersburg. it’s on the water, it looks nice, it’s louder and your in the city and stuff. Something like that would attract more attention than off the highway next to the bucs stadium. it may not have the easy access of al lopez for people all around but AL lang would be the coolest place if they did it waterfront of something like that (kind of like pittsburgh or san francisco)
Let me first say I love your design for the stadium. The retractable roof is a must have now that they are proven to work properly and are getting cheaper with every year. I love the shape of the stadium and think it’s cool that you made it look like a ray. Also the butterfly retractable roof like Milwaukee has is a definitely cooler to me than just a square roof sliding back and hanging over the street. The only thing I don’t like is the minarets. UT has their own identity the devil rays should have their own identity too. Just like how the bucs have a pirate ship in the end zone, the devil rays need to have as many original things as possible or your stadium gets boring and cookie cutter like the new Busch stadium in st. Louis. I hope the new one really looks like this, because you did all the right things for a basic starting point of a new stadium design.
Moving on, I have always heard that the 2 biggest issues for building a major league stadium are: 1.accessibility for vendors, trucks, and employees; 2. Land size. So we have to have surrounded it with streets that are easy to maneuver and make sure it’s big enough for the stadium, the loading docks, and the parking.
So that’s why I think the 1-4 option is probably the best. It’s not too far away from Tampa where the major population is. It also capitalizes on the up and coming 1-4 areas like Seffner and ybor. Also Sternberg said he wanted more central Florida fans when they played at Disney and being that much closer to Orlando could help that situation. The good news is the land is cheap now and the interstate access makes it convenient for everyone. The downside is will there be parking and will it cost too much to dry up the swamps and make it sturdy for a heavy stadium. Overall though, a great choice since we have no downtown land like Baltimore and Colorado, nor do we have waterfront land like San Francisco and Pittsburgh.
The Yankees won’t give up their practice fields to another major league team and if they did the stadium would take up much of the parking we barely have for bucs games. Plus parking for the bucs games is easy because car dealerships and other businesses in the area can shut down for a Sunday to have people park there and not lose any business, but probably can’t do it on a regular basis epically during the week.
I know people say the current location wouldn’t be that bad if we were winning, but I completely disagree. First off Tampa has the biggest population in the bay area, bar none, so they should be the ones getting catered to as far as convenience. Second off anytime someone names a team that plays outside of the major city forgets that those teams are usually football teams where you can make a day trip once every other week to go or they have public transportation such as subways and other kinds of trains. Along those same lines the Tampa Yankees can draw 2,000 people for crappy low A minor league baseball and can sell out when big names rehab there. So I think if major league teams with big names especially our division rivals the yanks and sox came to town we could draw more on with a closer location. Finally Tampa has more funds than St. Pete and I feel they can help with the upkeep of a stadium better.
Progress Energy’s location has the same location issue and has even less land to work with. The problem with building around water compared to regular land is that you can’t buy out the surrounding water and build over it like you can with regular land. Plus the establishments around the field that aren’t water have been there too long to destroy for a baseball field in my opinion.
The former Toy town landfill might be a decent option as far as land goes. The problem again is location, people wont drive out there. Plus we will have the stigma that our baseball field is built on an old trash dump and the jokes about our team being trash and playing on trash would get annoying.
As for money I say we do a 1/2 cent sales tax like we did for the bucs, it’s only fair to give them a new stadium so they can turn the team around like the bucs did.
Hope this isn’t too long and I hope you guys give me feed back good or bad so I can see what the rest of the world thinks!
A lot of talk has been centered on downtown Tampa, and a few people have complained about commute. But one thing happening is the expansion of I-275 and I think there is a prime downtown location that hasn’t been mentioned that could work. The Riverfront Park area north of Tampa Prep. and S. of 275 would be an amazing location, aesthetics wize, that doesn’t have the worst accesability problems that some other places might have. Most of the surrounding area S of 275 is rundown and could be used for parking, etc… But think about the view of the stadium. You could construct it so that homeplate faces SE, and have the Hillsborough river just beyond the Left Field fence, Tampa skyline to the SE, use the drawbridges there as converted pedestrian bridges or something, and never worry about glare during late afternoon games with the height of the stadium shielding the sun from over 50% of the stadium, much like Bucs games that start at 4pm. Im sure the land is really expensive there, but isn’t any piece of land that is located downtown? And though the lot size looks too compact, it really isn’t, compared to the idea of someone previous who thought the convention center was a good location. That is waaaaay too small. Anyway, something to think about and consider.
But before all else,
Build a team before you build a stadium. Or else save the taxpayers and disenfrachised fans their time and money and absolve the team or move it to somewhere else who will care even less about the rays.
A lot of talk has been centered on downtown Tampa, and a few people have complained about commute. But one thing happening is the expansion of I-275 and I think there is a prime downtown location that hasn’t been mentioned that could work. The Riverfront Park area north of Tampa Prep. and S. of 275 would be an amazing location, aesthetics wize, that doesn’t have the worst accesability problems that some other places might have. Most of the surrounding area S of 275 is rundown and could be used for parking, etc… But think about the view of the stadium. You could construct it so that homeplate faces SE, and have the Hillsborough river just beyond the Left Field fence, Tampa skyline to the SE, use the drawbridges there as converted pedestrian bridges or something, and never worry about glare during late afternoon games with the height of the stadium shielding the sun from over 50% of the stadium, much like Bucs games that start at 4pm. Im sure the land is really expensive there, but isn’t any piece of land that is located downtown? And though the lot size looks too compact, it really isn’t, compared to the idea of someone previous who thought the convention center was a good location. That is waaaaay too small. Anyway, something to think about and consider.
But before all else,
Build a team before you build a stadium. Or else save the taxpayers and disenfrachised fans their time and money and absolve the team or move it to somewhere else who will care even less about the rays.
I love the idea! Blake High School’s football field is right there on the river and it is one of the best views in Tampa. As long as there is enough room then they should do it; since you want a revitilize downtown; have a view; have it in a part of town where you can keep the surround bars, clubs, and resturants open late; and it puts those trolleys to use finally.
im a 21 y.o. college student back home for a few weeks this summer....
first off, the first thing that needs to happen is the Yankees need to leave Tampa. before you start with all of the great things Steinbrenner’s done for the community, and he has done many, the Yankees keep transplants from becoming fans.
second, all the Pinellas residents saying that its not that big of a deal to drive to SP for a game have no idea what they’re talking about. Try driving to Brandon, New Tampa, or Carrolwood in time to make a 7:15 game. In order for me to get to SP from Temple Terrace, i have to drive in traffic on 275, through the junction, and then across the bridge. i don’t mind it too much once in a while, but it does keep me from holding season tickets....i just wouldn’t use them.
third, why SP in the first place? Tampa has higher population, and i know for a fact that many kids, or more likely teens-early 20’s would go to so many more games, especially in the summertime in Tampa.
Think about it, you go downtown to see an evening game, it ends around 10, yo make your way over to channel side, maybe Ybor, and have a few drinks. Now before all you geezers from Pinellas argue “what about the young people from Pinellas County?” exactly....what about them? they obviously don’t care. The college nights they have at the trop, if marketed correctly here in tampa COULD be huge.
fourth, the biggest problem that this stadium issue presents is the need for a mass transit system for the bay area. beltway, train, i dont know, but the only thing that will ever keep people wanting to go see a game is knowing they won’t sit in traffic for an hour to go 20 miles.
Over the 10 long years that the Rays have played at the Trop, the stadium has been getting better each year. But for me its hard to take a road trip to the games in down town St. Pete. I live in Spring Hill, Florida (Hernando County), so its like a two hour drive. if the cheap ass owner would put more money to the team for a new stadium in Tampa, I would go to more games. by the way they call them selfs the TAMPA BAY D-RAYS not the ST.PETE D-RAYS!
i agree with capt. that would be a nice site. the design the trib made is nice, but i HATE the outfield, almost no view of our beautiful skyline. downtown tampa should be the best location, but ONLY if the trollys came more popular, and if we had some mass transit, a light rail would be great. I like the trop, but HATE the location, im a teen in wesely chapel and it takes an hour and a half to get to the game, our parents would never give us a ride due to the time it takes.
You show us a winner and we’ll show you a new stadium! I watch ever game and we are really starting to show some promise. If this team contents for the playoffs every year this community will get behind a new stadium project. The design of the new stadium is fantastic but as most posts mention timing will be everything.
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?
Oh lord, is it just me, or did I hop in a time machine and travel back to 1995? This is the design the ownership group should have followed back then, rather than take the easy way out and stick the team in a venue that was designed to fail from the start.
Things might have turned out very differently; the twin sibling separated from you at birth and thriving 3000 miles to the west serves as a painful lesson.
Al Lang Field is the absolute best site site for a new ballpark! The best ballparks are located in downtown areas, and if done right, this could really bring St Pete to the next level. Its also really exciting to think about what could happen at the Trop site. Maybe we’ll finally get some decent retail? I’m tired of crossing the bay to get a decent pair of shoes.
By the way....the design for the imaginary ballpark on this website is so tacky. How about something original rather than these nostalgic throw backs. And don’t we have enough spanish tile roofing in Florida?!?
I’m hoping for a really cool modern design that shows off the water and the city. Go Rays!
Please move the stadium to Tampa!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Tampa is by far a bigger sports town that St. Pete. Additionally, the I-4/I-275 intersection gives easy access from South Tampa, North Tampa, Tampa Palms, East Tampa, Lakeland, Orlando (about 50 minutes), St. Petersburg (all highway driving), and the entire region in general. It is a spot connected by 2 major highways, has plenty of open space, and would maximize convenience. In addition the land value is significantly lower than waterfront Al Lang field, making the stadium potentially cheaper.
I’m sick of the Rays front office trying to keep the stadium in St. Pete. If they are going to keep it there, then maybe the toytown landfill would be the best location, or maybe something near the Gandy Bridge, otherwise i really don’t see the point in making it more difficult for people from Tampa by moving it to Al Lang Field.
Imagine that traffic mess!!!!!!!
A New Ballpark Does Not Overcome a Bad Team: One Set of Facts
A poster wrote:
“A good example of the possibilities are the Pirates, who have been worse than the devil rays for longer. Recently they moved into a new stadium and continually draw 30,000 or more people per game. That should efficiently nullify the argument that people won’t come if the talent doesn’t improve.”
That would be a sound argument, but only if the 30k figure was accurate. The Pirates have averaged 30k in attendance only once @ PNC, and that was during the novelty of the opening season. In fact, during the seven years that the Pirates have played in PNC, the average attendance figures are:
