Rays Owner Stuart Sternberg said that if the agreement with St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman allowing the team to search for new ballpark sites "is not approved and a new stadium is not under construction within the next few years ... there will be no baseball at all" in the region, according to a front-page piece by Marc Topkin of the TAMPA BAY TIMES. Sternberg said that he "likely will sell the team, and a new owner will move it after the Tropicana Field lease expires" in '27 if the deal is shot down by the St. Petersburg City Council. Sternberg: "The chances of me owning this team in 2023 if we don't have a new stadium are probably nil. Somebody else will take it and move it. It's not a threat, just the reality." He said approval by the City Council during a vote tomorrow remains "a big hurdle." Sternberg added that "despite years of low attendance, he still believes in the Tampa Bay market." He said, "Baseball can still flourish down here, and I'm looking for the opportunity to make that happen. We need to get the building and the location pinpoint perfect for that to happen." He said that the Rays "had not yet considered preferences for new sites, and even if all went smoothly they still would play in the Trop for four to five years." He added that it "was still 'very possible' they would end up building on a site in St. Petersburg." Sternberg said that he "didn't know exactly what they would do if the agreement is not approved by the council." But Topkin notes he "certainly sounded discouraged by the prospects" (TAMPA BAY TIMES, 12/10).
ANALYZE THIS: In Tampa, Nohlgren, Frago & Stanley report the preliminary agreement between Kriseman and the Rays "would give the team three years to analyze possible sites" in Hillsborough and Pinellas counties. Kriseman said that he "did not know if he has enough votes to pass the agreement." However, Nohlgren, Frago & Stanley note given "how long it takes to build a stadium, waiting much longer to get going increases chances the team will leave the region." Kriseman said that he "would make an aggressive pitch for either a new stadium on the Tropicana Field acreage or renovation of the Trop itself." If the council approves the deal, the Rays "will take four to six weeks to develop guidelines for a new stadium project." Rays VP/Development Melanie Lenz said that they "expect landowners in both Pinellas and Hillsborough to pitch prospective sites of at least 10 acres" (TAMPA BAY TIMES, 12/10).
