Key meeting upcoming in Rays' wish for $1 billion in stadium public money

TAMPA — A key meeting is coming up in early May as the Tampa Bay Rays continue their quest for more than $1 billion in taxpayer subsidies to build a new 31,000-seat baseball stadium in Tampa, across the bay from the St. Petersburg ballpark they have called home since 1998. The total price tag of the proposed stadium, next door to where the NFL’s Buccaneers play, is estimated at $2.

3 billion by the Rays ownership team. After the Hillsborough County Commission got a first look at the financing plan, the Tampa City Council will get its chance on Tuesday, May 5. The Rays, recently purchased by a new group of owners, say they will foot about half the cost.

The rest, they say, should come from Hillsborough County and the city of Tampa. The ask from the team, according to a letter to the county from Rays CEO Ken Babby, is $750 million from Hillsborough County, $251 million from Tampa, and another $64 million in public money yet to be identified. There was skepticism raised at a recent Hillsborough County Commission meeting on the issue.

“I would love to be able to vote yes on this,” said commissioner Harry Cohen at that session. “But I can only vote yes on it if I’m absolutely convinced that it’s the right thing for the community and the taxpayers. ” No votes have been scheduled yet.