Grand Central District businesses prepare for Rays departure

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Businesses in St. Petersburg’s Grand Central District are preparing for a future with fewer Tampa Bay Rays game-day crowds.

The Hillsborough County Commission and Tampa City Council approved funding last week for a new Rays stadium in Tampa.

The area along Central Avenue near Tropicana Field sees more foot traffic when the Rays play at home, with fans walking through the neighborhood and stopping at nearby businesses before and after games.

The team’s lease at Tropicana Field runs through the 2028 season.

At The Burg Bar and Grill, a few blocks from Tropicana Field, owner Bill Georgiou said Rays games bring important business.

“It’s nice to have foot traffic,” Georgiou said. “When the Rays are here, especially on the weekends, it’s really nice that all the parking spots are full. People are constantly walking by, stopping in.”

Georgiou has been at the business for 18 years. The restaurant has Tampa Bay Rays memorabilia, and Georgiou said he created a Rays-themed shirt for the business.

“I call this the triple-play shirt,” Georgiou said. “It’s the St. Petersburg, it’s the Rays and our place, The Burg Bar and Grill.”

Christian Arnold is the executive director of the Grand Central District Association, which represents about 400 businesses. Arnold said hospitality businesses are likely to be hit the hardest.

“It’s been a topic of discussion for several years,” Arnold said. “But with it actually looming now, people are certainly concerned.”

Arnold said losing the Rays also means losing the team’s role in supporting community events. He said the Rays allow the district to use their parking lot during Halloween on Central, the district’s largest street festival.

“They let us use their parking lot so that people coming down for events have a place to park,” Arnold said. “So that’s just as important to us, and we’re absolutely going to miss that part of it as well.”

Georgiou said he has concerns about what comes next but is also looking ahead to what redevelopment of Tropicana Field and the Historic Gas Plant District could bring to the neighborhood.

“We got to keep on going, no matter what it is,” Georgiou said. “This type of business, that’s what we have to do on a daily basis, and we’re going to make it work, there’s no question. Been here this long, I’m not going anywhere.”

St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch has selected two proposals for the Historic Gas Plant District site. The plans include senior housing, a permanent home for the Woodson African American Museum and a park.

The redevelopment proposals still need approval from the St. Petersburg City Council.

If approved, construction could eventually begin on those portions of the site.