The Pinellas County Fee has delayed its vote on $312.5 million in bonds to assist fund the brand new Rays stadium to December 17, expressing intensive anger at each the Tampa Bay Rays and proprietor Stuart Sternberg.
By delaying the vote as soon as once more, the Fee have one other month to analysis some excellent questions concerning the prices of hurricane repairs and the potential of federal reimbursement. However whereas some commissioners did appear to need extra data, the primary animus that will have led to the delay gave the impression to be centered on the Tampa Bay Rays latest habits.
Within the hours previous the Fee assembly, the Rays despatched what has been described as a warning letter claiming the staff had “suspended work on the whole undertaking” and never simply the brand new stadium.
The Commissioners took particular umbrage with the letter all through right now’s assembly, claiming it put undue strain to approve the bonds.
Through the assembly, Commissioner Scott — a earlier Sure vote on the bonds — revealed that Rays president Brian Auld had complained the day earlier than the bonds have been delayed about escalating prices for the brand new stadium undertaking, notably because of the Rays proudly owning the burden of any value overruns. He then immediately accused the Rays of wanting a “no” vote on the bonds to be able to permit the staff to try to negotiate an much more favorable deal.
Additionally angering the Fee have been leaks to the press that the Rays stadium deal was “doubtless” useless because of the delay within the bond vote, which was propitiated by the 2 hurricanes that struck Pinellas County earlier this 12 months.
A 3rd component that clearly upset the Commissioners was the belief that Sternberg would revenue from redeveloping the Trop website even when the staff left Pinellas County because of the bonds not getting issued. The one recourse mentioned can be if the Rays backed out of the stadium deal themselves, presumably as a consequence of rising development prices.
Commissioner Scott addressed this as properly, saying, “We have to comply with by way of with our commitments and put the strain on the Rays. In the event that they stroll away, let Sternberg personal the failure. Why ought to we personal the failure?”
In fact, if the Rays wished to save lots of the brand new stadium deal, they’ve an odd method of exhibiting it.
By failing to have interaction with Commissioners immediately after the bond vote was delayed (as they’d earlier than, in keeping with the Fee’s feedback), messaging by way of the press, after which sending a warning letter hours earlier than the newly scheduled vote, the Rays have mapped an ideal path to sinking the stadium deal.
This maybe ought to come as no shock, given how incessantly the Rays executives and proprietor mentioned baseball couldn’t work in St. Petersburg.
That tune didn’t change till the staff gained management of the total 86-acre redevelopment undertaking final 12 months, however in keeping with Commissioner Scott, it could seem that even that deal — which features a sweetheart deal on the worth of the land and $600 million in public cash towards a baseball stadium — might not entice the Rays to be Right here to Keep.
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Learn extra: What’s at stake in Pinellas County’s assembly on the brand new Rays Stadium bonds
