City council approves a new Tampa Bay Rays ballpark — and the existing site’s transformation
![](https://ktvz.b-cdn.net/2023/03/osKcX94i-News-BG-NC21-logo-1200x675-1.jpg)
Associated Press
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — A key city council vote is paving the way to give the Tampa Bay Rays a new 30,000-seat ballpark as part of a $6.5 billion redevelopment project in St. Petersburg, Florida. The new park would guarantee the team stays for at least 30 years. Supporters say the overall project would transform an 86-acre tract in the city’s downtown to include a Black history museum, affordable housing, a hotel, green space, entertainment venues, and office and retail space. The site, where the Rays’ domed Tropicana Field now sits, was once a thriving Black community driven out by construction of the ballpark and an interstate highway. The plan still requires approval from the Pinellas County Commission.