A Times story last week caused some readers\u2019 heads to explode, detailing how the Tampa Bay Rays might pursue hundreds of millions of tax dollars for the team\u2019s proposed stadium in Tampa.<\/p>\n
I understand the reaction but let\u2019s be fair: The Rays\u2019 owners have been clear they may seek up to half the $2.3 billion estimated stadium cost from taxpayers. Maybe there\u2019s something different about seeing that dollar figure in print. In my view, a politician in the current environment would have to be nuts to support such an outsized handout. Still, there\u2019s time for an informed debate once we see a term sheet. That should happen soon.<\/p>\n
But I want to address something else today \u2014 what I see as three big clouds hanging over any agreement to attract the Rays. Don\u2019t get me wrong; it matters how much public money is involved, and it\u2019s safe to presume that as the subsidy mounts, so will public opposition. (The Times reported March 16 the stadium\u2019s elaborate roof could cost at least $300 million more than thought.) But I see underlying problems with the timing, urgency and messaging of this deal that will only compound the backlash over costs. It\u2019s a reminder of how big projects need all the stars to align.<\/p>\n
Timing. The Rays want a stadium by the 2029 season, which means the various agreements with state and local governments must conclude by mid-year, with construction breaking ground in the fall. That timetable coincides with the 2026 elections, where in Florida, Republicans have targeted property tax cuts and government spending, while Democrats are campaigning on the affordability crisis. In short, politicians from both parties have boxed themselves in with populist promises. The ongoing U.S. war on Iran hasn\u2019t helped, as gas prices rise with no end in sight.<\/p>\n
Recent events outside Florida\u2019s control have shrunk the already narrow space for Republicans and Democrats to coalesce behind the Rays as a priority. Citizens appearing at city and county commission meetings want help with rent, groceries and the light bill. Nobody is asking for a ballpark. One bad storm this hurricane season could further sour the climate. Tampa also will elect a new mayor and City Council a year from now. This deal is a tough sell in any economy but especially so now, with the public mood inward-looking and gripped with uncertainty.<\/p>\n
Urgency. The Rays\u2019 timetable is driven not only by its lease expiring at Tropicana Field but the owners\u2019 desire for a heftier revenue stream. That\u2019s one reason it chose to pursue a stadium at Hillsborough College, envisioning a mixed-use community in a working-class neighborhood in Tampa\u2019s Drew Park, alongside Tampa International Airport.<\/p>\n
That site seems like a dud, isolated and hemmed in by an airport and major highway. That\u2019s the problem of having a compacted schedule for decision-making; it leaves little time to reimagine an established sense of place in the public eye. Whether you liked the Rays\u2019 scuttled deal to rebuild at Tropicana Field, it was years in the making, and that long public rollout gave residents a clear picture of what the 86-acre development would look like. We had time to see the details, and provide public feedback, giving local residents more skin in the game. It also created the window necessary for civic leaders to champion the stadium project as a boon for the region.<\/p>\n
Messaging. Tampa residents have a history with the owners of the Buccaneers, the New York Yankees and the Lightning. The new Rays owners parachute in, and residents ask: Why are we giving money to people we don\u2019t know?<\/p>\n
I raise that because Tampa is a tight-knit, working-class town you need to understand to navigate. Yet some of the missteps are mind boggling. College president Ken Atwater, for example, asserted that the buildout means his college\u2019s tennis center \u201cwill be moved\u201d to Tampa\u2019s Al Lopez Park. That was news to the city. I also can\u2019t imagine many worse places for it, given the park\u2019s wooded setting and popularity as a natural oasis.<\/p>\n
Similarly, the Rays plan would apparently uproot a 25,000-square foot office the Hillsborough County Tax Collector operates to serve nearly 1,000 people per day \u2014 many of them Spanish-speaking from the heavily Hispanic West Tampa and Town \u2018N Country neighborhoods. \u201cI have not been contacted by anyone about this,\u201d Tax Collector Nancy Millan told me March 16.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s not that we can\u2019t find workarounds for a tennis center or a government building. The problem is we\u2019re rushing negotiations without thinking about the impacts or even talking to those who\u2019d be affected. There\u2019s a \u201cthrow-it-on-the wall\u201d quality to this proposal, and the people behind it haven\u2019t done their homework. That\u2019s partly due to the weird, conflicted role Hillsborough College is playing as both middleman and beneficiary.<\/p>\n
Hillsborough and Tampa officials should not rush a decision. Let\u2019s get a term sheet and go from there. But there\u2019s underlying headwinds in play, and some rookie mistakes haven\u2019t helped.<\/p>\n
John Hill is a columnist for the Tampa Bay Times.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A Times story last week caused some readers\u2019 heads to explode, detailing how the Tampa Bay Rays might…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":210103,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[17494,6678,110,135,3815,137,136],"class_list":["post-210102","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-tampa","tag-column","tag-opinions","tag-sports","tag-tampa","tag-tampa-bay-rays","tag-tampa-headlines","tag-tampa-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/210102","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=210102"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/210102\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/210103"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=210102"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=210102"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=210102"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}