Hillsborough County had a plan to keep the Tampa Bay Rays in the area. The problem is that ownership refuses to meet halfway.
In theory, the Tampa Bay Rays want to remain in the area. They had attempted to put together plans for a new ballpark in Ybor City, but were unable to secure funding to get the proposition beyond the drawing board. Nonetheless, ownership claims to be committed to keeping the Rays in town.
However, they are committed to keeping the Rays in town on their terms. This, apparently, means a refusal to meet halfway in regards to the cost of a new stadium.
Hillsborough County came up with a plan to pay for half the cost for a #Rays stadium in Tampa. Stuart Sternberg walked away from the deal. He refuses to pay for even half of his own stadium and is holding Tampa Bay hostage to come up with a better deal.
— Kevin ODonnell Fox13🟦 (@ODonnellFox13) June 25, 2019
At this point, Stuart Sternberg has only committed to spending $150 million towards any new ballpark, looking to put the financial onus on the county and the taxpayers. After watching what happened in Miami after the Marlins received their new ballpark, it is understandable why the county would not be interested in going beyond the halfway point.
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As O’Donnell said in his tweet, Sternberg is holding the Tampa Bay area hostage when it comes to the stadium. He has publicly courted the city of Montreal recently, proposing that the Rays could play half a season in Canada. Sternberg went as far as to say that there is no hope for 81 games in Tampa Bay.
While the Rays do have attendance concerns, those problems are likely due to Tropicana Field itself. After all, the team does draw well on television. There is interest in the team, there are questions as to how committed the region is to the franchise.
Meanwhile, the same question can be asked of ownership. How committed are the Rays to the Tampa Bay-St. Pete region? At this point, it appears that they are far more interested in looking for another city to call home than they are in working with the county.
Hillsborough County is willing to meet the Tampa Bay Rays halfway when it comes to a new stadium. Even that is far too rich for Stuart Sternberg’s blood.