Carlson has been involved in negotiations since the council and CRA board rejected key elements <\/a>of the original stadium deal two weeks ago. Rays CEO Ken Babby contacted Carlson the following day, and the team subsequently agreed to bring council members<\/a> into discussions.<\/p>\n Carlson has long sought to include council members in the negotiations. Previously, only Mayor Jane Castor\u2019s staff represented the city in talks.<\/p>\n The mayor, in an interview with WFLA radio on Friday, confirmed the change.<\/p>\n “We have moved from the idea of a CRA, the Drew Park CRA being involved, to the possibility of having a TIF with oversight from a CDD,\u201d Castor said.<\/p>\n A TIF is a public funding method to subsidize infrastructure and community redevelopment. A CDD manages improvements for new growth.<\/p>\n Carlson said the Rays have been receptive to his proposals, which are based on what he calls \u201ctax revenue sharing.\u201d<\/p>\n Tax revenue sharing from TIF district<\/p>\n The Rays have committed to spend at least $1.2 billion on construction of the $2.3 billion stadium, planned on 122 acres in Tampa\u2019s Drew Park neighborhood. The Hillsborough County Commission has approved a nonbinding agreement to invest $796 million.<\/p>\n Under Carlson\u2019s plan, the property \u2013 currently home to Hillsborough College\u2019s Dale Mabry campus \u2013 would be defined as a home-rule tax-increment financing (TIF) district for 35 years. Property taxes generated from multiuse development would be directed to the city, Hillsborough County and a new Community Development District, Carlson said.<\/p>\n A CDD is a designated government entity with the power to finance, build and maintain only public infrastructure within the district.<\/p>\n \u201cI proposed a CDD because it provides another layer of public scrutiny,\u201d Carlson told WUSF. \u201cIt’s subject to public records and (Florida\u2019s) Sunshine Law, and the CDD will only be able to spend the money on publicly owned, government-owned property. Things like stormwater, roads, sidewalks.\u201d<\/p>\n Unlike the mixed-use development, the ballpark will be owned by Hillsborough County and therefore won’t generate property taxes. <\/p>\n “From the city perspective, right now that piece of land is not generating any property taxes for the city or the county,” Carlson said of the state-owned<\/a> college campus. “And as they build it out, the property taxes will increase, and the city and county will participate with the project CDD on that revenue stream. But all of it, including the CDD, will only go to public investment infrastructure.”<\/p>\n ALSO READ: What is a CRA? And why does it matter in the Rays’ stadium debate?<\/a><\/p>\n Carlson\u2019s pitch also requires redrawing the Drew Park CRA boundary to exclude the stadium district and the CRA would be extended from 2034 until 2064. A CRA reinvests future increases in property taxes in a blighted area.<\/p>\n \u201cDrew Park will be able to control its own destiny with its own funding,\u201d Carlson said. “And they can keep the same base year, which means that the money that’s flowing in already would continue, except that we have the potential to extend it for 30 years.”<\/p>\n Under the new agreement, the Rays have asked Tampa to provide the CDD with an $80 million advance draw, paid in four annual installments of $20 million, Carlson said. The CDD would repay the city from its share of the tax revenue generated by the stadium district. Carlson said the advance would not require the city to divert other taxes or fees.<\/p>\n Carlson emphasized no city money would go to the Rays or \u201cany for-profit activities.\u201d It would only go to infrastructure that’s owned by the city, county or the state.<\/p>\n Gensler, Populous<\/p>\n \/<\/p>\n Tampa Bay Rays <\/p>\n The Tampa Bay Rays released illustrations related to the proposed stadium district’s surrounding mixed-use development, with a focus on office space. Under a proposal by Council member Bill Carlson, property taxes generated from multiuse development would be directed to the city, Hillsborough County and a new Community Development District. Tampa would use its share to help fund construction of the stadium. <\/p>\n Creating an infrastructure trust fund<\/p>\n In May, the city council voted 4-3 to approve a nonbinding memorandum of understanding with the Rays that called for an $80 million investment from the CIT, a half-cent surtax voters renewed in 2024. Carlson said he would change his yes to no if the framework did not change, and he has long been considered the swing vote in the city\u2019s participation.<\/p>\n County commissioners voted 5-2 to approve a nonbinding MOU that included a $796 million county contribution. However, the CRA board did not pass the proposed $100 million contribution from the Drew Park CRA.<\/p>\n Carlson\u2019s argument for the new financing structure is rooted in the city\u2019s need for infrastructure and his opposition to using existing revenue sources for the stadium project.<\/p>\n ALSO READ: Rays’ latest renderings focus on mixed-use district surrounding planned stadium<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m against taking money away from needed infrastructure, and so we\u2019re not doing that,\u201d Carlson said.<\/p>\n That concern led to another part of his proposal unrelated to the Rays: creating a citywide infrastructure trust fund to cover the \u201cbillions of dollars in deferred maintenance on roads, sidewalks and stormwater.\u201d<\/p>\n The fund would be partially fed by the city\u2019s share of the tax revenue from the multiuse development in the stadium district.<\/p>\n More from the Downtown Tampa CRA<\/p>\n Additionally, Carlson said he wants to redirect roughly half of the future property taxes generated annually by the Downtown Tampa CRA. He estimates that would amount to about $20 million a year over 30 years, or more than $600 million.<\/p>\n Combined, he estimates the fund could generate $1.5 billion to $2 billion over 30 to 35 years without raising taxes.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat I’m trying to do is create a win-win-win situation,\u201d he said. \u201cThe city went from having to pay money, taking money from other sources, to now participating in a revenue stream that will fund infrastructure without raising taxes. We’re not subsidizing any for-profit activities.\u201d<\/p>\n The downtown CRA began in 1983, was amended in 1988 and later extended to 2043.<\/p>\n \u201cCRAs are supposed to be to solve slum and blight, and there’s no slum and blight in downtown anymore,\u201d he said. \u201cSo twice I’ve tried to pull money out of the downtown CRA because the rest of the city is subsidizing it, and we’re spending money on things that are nice to have instead of necessities.\u201d<\/p>\n ALSO READ: Could the Rays build a Tampa stadium without any money from the city?<\/a><\/p>\n Another layer in the proposal would be extending the CRA in East Tampa for 30 years. Like the Drew Park CRA, the East Tampa area is scheduled to sunset in 2034.<\/p>\n City council members also sit as the Tampa CRA board, although there is an interlocal agreement with the county that governs each of the nine redevelopment areas. Any changes would also have to be approved by the county.<\/p>\n \u201cThe simple thing is that we\u2019re not using any other source of funds. We\u2019re not taking money away from anybody else,\u201d Carlson said. \u201cThat\u2019s the selling point to me. Without that, I wouldn\u2019t approve it.\u201d<\/p>\n Seeking public review and feedback<\/p>\n Carlson has asked the Rays to make a rough draft of the tax revenue-sharing agreement public before the city council considers a vote, giving residents time to review the details and offer feedback.<\/p>\n He said the Rays would then have an opportunity to incorporate that feedback into a final version, which should be released with more than the required seven days\u2019 notice before any council vote.<\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1786282964_175_.jpeg\"\/)
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