Hillsborough County released revised definitive documents on the Tampa Bay Rays stadium late Tuesday, clearing the way for Tampa City Council and county commission to meet this week and decide on whether to move forward with the project.<\/p>\n
In addition, the Rays released details of the proposed Community Benefits Agreement, laying out the team\u2019s commitments for affordable housing, jobs, youth, small-business and transportation and more.<\/p>\n
The timing of the release reflects negotiations that ended hours before the city council meets at 9 a.m. Thursday. If there is approval, the county commission will hold a special meeting at 9 a.m. Friday to vote. Both will include time for public comment.<\/p>\n
A version of the definitive documents was posted Friday at 5 p.m., a deadline to place the issue on Thursday\u2019s city council meeting agenda. At the time, however, the county administrator sent a memo to commissioners that said there were \u201coutstanding issues which we are continuing to address, and these documents are not the final documents.\u201d<\/p>\n
ALSO READ:\u00a0Final agreement reached on Rays stadium. Next up: votes by city and county<\/a><\/p>\n The Rays want to build the $2.3 billion stadium on 21.5 acres of a 115-acre parcel now used by Hillsborough College\u2019s Dale Mabry campus. A privately funded multi-use development would go up around the ballpark over the 35-year lease.<\/p>\n Per the agreement, the city and county would contribute no more than $876 million toward the stadium project, while the Rays will cover more than $1.3 billion and all cost overruns.<\/p>\n The city contribution is capped at $80 million and the county contribution at about $796 million, including $360 million from the Community Investment Tax, $263 million in Tourist Development Tax-backed funding, $103 million from other county funds and $30 million in federal disaster-recovery money.<\/p>\n Over the past several months, local officials have done exactly what taxpayers elected them to do. They pushed back. They negotiated. They challenged assumptions. They forced changes. The final agreement reflects that work.<\/p>\n Specifics on CDD, CRA changes<\/p>\n The latest changes primarily involve creation of a Community Development District (CDD) for the stadium development, which would include the ballpark and multi-use development. There are also specifics on the tax increment financing (TIF) within the CDD and protections for the county before funding is released.<\/p>\n Also added are specifics on amending three of Tampa\u2019s\u00a0Community Redevelopment Areas<\/a>, overlay districts in blighted areas that pump future property tax growth into public projects within the boundaries.<\/p>\n The CRA changes will require separate action by local governments and the CRA Board, which is also scheduled to meet Thursday.<\/p>\n ALSO READ:\u00a0Tampa council, still awaiting final documents, sets a Rays stadium vote for Aug. 27<\/a><\/p>\n The most significant is a \u201ccarveout resolution\u201d to remove the stadium district from the Drew Park CRA. There is also a pledge to extend the CRA, an item accidentally omitted from the original document, said Councilman Bill Carlson, who\u00a0helped negotiate<\/a>\u00a0many of the city\u2019s terms over the past few weeks.<\/p>\n There are also commitments to extend the East Tampa CRA to 2044 and West Tampa CRA to 2055, and modifications to county participation during those extensions.<\/p>\n In addition, the agreement proposes halving TIF revenue from the city\u2019s Downtown CRA but does not direct where the retained funds go. Their use would be determined through separate CRA and city approvals. According to Carlson, they would go toward a new trust fund to pay for citywide infrastructure improvements.<\/p>\n The revised document proposes changes intended to give the county significantly more procedural safeguards before public dollars are committed.<\/p>\n There are requirements before county funds can be released, including validation of bonds, validation of the CDD structure, execution of the Ballpark Operating Agreement, approval of the Community Benefits Agreement, completion of specific land-use actions and amendments to existing deed restrictions.<\/p>\n \u2018Continuous discussions\u2019 as clock ticks<\/p>\n The county also added protections allowing a reduction of its CIT contribution if the state does not deliver the pledged $100 million for Lithia Pinecrest Road improvements and expanded its ability to delay certain bond issuances if bonding capacity or rating concerns arise.<\/p>\n Ostensibly, Tuesday\u2019s version \u2013 which was accompanied by a copy with changes red-lined \u2013 is the one commissioners and councilors will act on, as the Rays face a\u00a0September deadline\u00a0<\/a>to begin construction in time to open the stadium by the 2029 baseball season.<\/p>\n