The Tampa Bay Rays, Hillsborough County and the City of Tampa have reached a final agreement on the financing, construction and upkeep of a new baseball stadium in Tampa.
Tampa Mayor Jane Castor confirmed the agreement at 5 p.m. Friday, the deadline stipulated by the city council to place the item on the agenda for this Thursday’s meeting.
"More than a ballpark — it's about creating jobs, attracting investment & building a vibrant district to benefit our community for generations," Castor wrote on X. "Still work ahead, but reaching this agreement shows what's possible when we stay at the table & keep our focus on what's best for Tampa."
The documents must be approved by the council before it will be taken up by the Hillsborough County Commission. All parties must sign off before construction can begin.
The $2.3 billion ballpark would go up on land now used by Hillsborough College’s Dale Mabry campus in the Drew Park neighborhood.
The Rays have committed more than $1.2 billion to stadium construction, with the city and county being asked to contribute nearly $1 billion combined.
The Rays also committed to spend at least $8 billion to build a multi-use development surrounding the stadium. It would include a modernized Hillsborough College campus and space for businesses, residences, retail, recreation and a major hotel.
The package is the culmination of roughly six months of negotiations between the Rays, the city, county and other project partners.
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The documents spell out the financing structure, public and private contributions, community benefits and commitments, development obligations and timelines, ownership and lease terms, and conditions and protections tied to the public funding.
According to the Rays, the agreement includes increased private investment from the team, a reduced public contribution from the MOU, cost overrun protections, no new taxes, protected public safety and a 35-year non-relocation commitment.
"We listened, and the result of our collaboration is a deal that improved each week for the public, is fair for all involved and supports our goals," Rays CEO Ken Babby said.
There are many changes from a nonbinding memorandum of understanding that was approved by the county commission and city council in May.
Also at the time, the Legislature was requiring a framework agreement between all parties before allocating $50 million in the annual state budget to Hillsborough College for infrastructure related to relocating the campus.
The news of the agreement comes after the Tampa City Council agreed to vote next Thursday on final documents covering stadium construction.
The Rays want to move into the new stadium by March 2029 and have developed an aggressive construction timeline that requires site work to begin by next month.
“Together with Hillsborough County and the City of Tampa, we’ve taken some big steps this year to make a Forever Home for the Rays in our region a reality – but none bigger than the one we are taking today,” Babby in a statement.
This is a breaking news story. Check back with WUSF for updates.
