{"id":167326,"date":"2026-02-24T19:28:29","date_gmt":"2026-02-24T19:28:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/167326\/"},"modified":"2026-02-24T19:28:29","modified_gmt":"2026-02-24T19:28:29","slug":"cabinets-land-transfer-vote-gives-tampa-bay-rays-ballpark-bid-a-big-boost","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/167326\/","title":{"rendered":"Cabinet\u2019s land transfer vote gives Tampa Bay Rays\u2019 ballpark bid a big boost"},"content":{"rendered":"

Top state officials have formally approved the conveyance of land in Hillsborough County to Hillsborough College, adding momentum to a proposal to relocate the Tampa Bay Rays<\/a> from St. Pete to Tampa.<\/p>\n

Gov. Ron DeSantis<\/a> and members of the Cabinet, sitting as the Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund, voted to convey approximately 22 acres of non-conservation land to Hillsborough College<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The officials said the move serves as a catalyst for a reimagined Dale Mabry campus<\/a> for Hillsborough College to go along with a new ballpark<\/a> for the Tampa Bay Rays. The action also authorized modification and release of long-standing deed restrictions tied to the Dale Mabry campus property.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Cabinet\u2019s action marks a significant milestone in the Rays\u2019 effort to relocate from St. Petersburg to Hillsborough County, though additional local approvals, financing arrangements<\/a> and Major League Baseball sign-off will still be required before construction can begin. The decision also comes as Hillsborough College seeks $50 million in state appropriations<\/a> to fund campus redevelopment.<\/p>\n

In a statement following the vote, Rays CEO Ken Babby<\/a> thanked DeSantis and the Cabinet for the approval, calling it \u201ca big moment for Tampa Bay.\u201d He reiterated the team\u2019s goal of opening a new ballpark and integrated \u201clive, work, play, and learn\u201d district by 2029.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cOur momentum is real and growing, thanks to the remarkable spirit of community and statewide partnership that our ownership group has been privileged to experience from the start,\u201d Babby said. \u201cThis is undoubtedly a big moment for Tampa Bay, and the Rays are fully in this moment to bring this vision to life, and serve our region for generations to come.\u201d<\/p>\n

DeSantis, who has already signaled support for the Rays<\/a> proposal, told Cabinet members state dollars and conveyances could help Hillsborough College redevelop alongside the proposed ballpark district. He said the area as having \u201ca lot of potential\u201d and said a partnership between the college and the Rays could benefit both the institution and the broader region.\u00a0<\/p>\n

He pointed to nearby sports anchors \u2014 including George M. Steinbrenner Field and Raymond James Stadium \u2014 and said adding a new Rays ballpark and surrounding development \u201cis going to really change the character of the area for the better.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI think this is appropriate, to empower them to be able to negotiate a deal that\u2019s going to allow them to have a reinvigorated and reimagined campus, and also connecting some of their students to all the great things that are going to be happening around them,\u201d DeSantis said.<\/p>\n

Attorney General James Uthmeier<\/a> seconded the motion and said the conveyance would provide a greater public benefit than state ownership, describing the site as \u201clargely just a bunch of parking lots.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s going to have significant economic benefits to the state; I also think a lot of great opportunities for the students to do internships, apprenticeships, walk right across the street and have job opportunities,\u201d Uthmeier said.<\/p>\n

DeSantis doubled down and said the land is not worth much to the state outside of a proposal like the Rays\u2019 ballpark and redevelopment concept.<\/p>\n

\u201cReally, in order to make this something that\u2019s special, it really has to be something unique like this,\u201d DeSantis said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Top state officials have formally approved the conveyance of land in Hillsborough County to Hillsborough College, adding momentum…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":125543,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[3816,69825,22641,4260,30124,412,135,3815,137,136],"class_list":{"0":"post-167326","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-tampa","8":"tag-baseball","9":"tag-dale-mabry","10":"tag-hillsborough-college","11":"tag-james-uthmeier","12":"tag-ken-babby","13":"tag-ron-desantis","14":"tag-tampa","15":"tag-tampa-bay-rays","16":"tag-tampa-headlines","17":"tag-tampa-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/167326","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=167326"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/167326\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/125543"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=167326"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=167326"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=167326"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}