Tampa Board Pulls Rays Stadium Vote Off the Calendar — And the CEO Says the Team May Not Need the City's Money

Tampa's push to help pay for a new Tampa Bay Rays ballpark hit another stall on Thursday, July 23, when city council members — sitting as the board of the city's Community Redevelopment Agency — voted 5-2 to remove the stadium item from their Aug. 20 meeting. It's the second time in six weeks the board has declined to take up its piece of the roughly $2.3 billion project, and it leaves one of the biggest development questions facing Tampa families — jobs, downtown-area traffic, tax dollars and whether Major League Baseball stays in the region — without a clear next date on the calendar.

The motion to pull the item came from council member Bill Carlson, according to local news reports. What the board was supposed to consider is a nonbinding memorandum of understanding tied to the CRA's role in financing the ballpark. Now it isn't clear if — or when — that vote will happen at all.

Part of the reason: the Rays no longer seem to be waiting on it. Team CEO Ken Babby said the franchise is "currently not contemplating action by the CRA board," according to local media outlets — a striking shift from just days earlier, when he warned that missing an August deadline could jeopardize both the ballpark and the team's future in Tampa Bay.

What the city was actually being asked to chip in

The city's proposed contribution is comparatively small in a project of this size. Under the plan approved in preliminary form earlier this year, Tampa would put in about $180 million — $80 million from the city's share of the Community Investment Tax, a renewed half-cent sales tax set to take effect in December, and $100 million routed through a state-designated community redevelopment area.

With a CRA, future increases in property tax revenue from the surrounding area are used to pay off bonds for the project. That mechanism is exactly the part council members, wearing their CRA-board hats, have been reluctant to sign off on.

By Babby's own math, the city's money represents about 3.5% of the overall price tag. The Rays have committed more than $1.2 billion, and the broader public package calls for Hillsborough County to invest roughly $796 million from sources including tourist development taxes and the Community Investment Tax.

"The train can leave without them"

In comments to local media outlets in the days before Thursday's vote, Babby made clear the team is looking at ways to move forward without Tampa's contribution. He said negotiators are exploring financing alternatives and that the project could proceed if the city stepped aside — while stressing the Rays still want Tampa involved and are not running a competitive process with other cities.

He also framed a cost to backing out: according to the memorandum, the city's participation is linked to negotiated community benefits — hiring goals, neighborhood improvements, community investments and youth programs. If Tampa opts out, Babby suggested, residents lose access to those commitments even if the stadium still gets built.

One option floated if the city walks away is shifting the CRA responsibility from the city to Hillsborough County, with the county potentially picking up a larger share of the cost.

Why the clock matters

The August timeline isn't arbitrary. Babby has said decisions need to be finalized this summer to keep the ballpark on track for an April 2029 opening. Miss that window, he warned, and the schedule — and, in his framing, the team's long-term future in the region — comes into question.

The pressure is sharpened by activity elsewhere. An Orlando investment group has renewed its pitch for a Major League Baseball team, saying it will seek nearly $1 billion in Orange County tourist development taxes and touting more than $2 billion lined up for a team purchase and stadium. Babby has emphasized the Rays remain committed to Tampa Bay, calling the current plan "Tampa's deal."

What happens next

For now, the practical answer is: nobody has said. With the item off the Aug. 20 agenda and the team publicly stepping back from waiting on the board, the city's role is more uncertain than it has been all year — even as final definitive documents continue to be negotiated among the team, the mayor's office, the county and other stakeholders.

Residents who want to weigh in can follow the CRA board's agendas and meeting schedule directly through the City of Tampa, where upcoming council and redevelopment agency items are posted.

We'll keep tracking this one closely — it's among the most consequential decisions on Tampa's plate. For more updates, visit Tampa Community Website and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and X. Have a take on whether the city should keep its money in the deal? Join the conversation in our Community Forum, and read more government and politics stories and local sports coverage from around town.

Header photo: Ebyabe / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.5)