Rays send letter ahead of Tuesday’s vote

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — UPDATE: Ahead of Tuesday’s bond vote, the Rays have responded to Pinellas County’s request for information to show they’ve been fulfilling their stadium obligations. The Rays sent a letter on Wednesday night stating they have done 50% of the design and spent $11.6 million.

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The letter, sent on Tuesday afternoon, reads:

“County Administrator Burton,

We are in receipt of your letter from this past Thursday. 

The draft Construction Funds Trust Agreement you sent is in final form and is acceptable to StadCo.

As you are aware, the information you requested is not required until the County is ready to commence the bond issuance; however, in an effort to be responsive to your request, we have created the attached checklist that details the status of the requested information. We have also provided an accounting of stadium expenditures as of 7/31/24.

We are happy to provide the County Commission a comprehensive project update prior to bond issuance. We will also provide a hard copy of the 50% design document presentation to you this week.

Sincerely,

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Matt Silverman

President

Tampa Bay Rays”

PREVIOUS STORY: Tampa Bay Rays officials said last week they were optimistic Pinellas County would vote in favor of the $312 million in bonds to keep the new stadium project moving forward.

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But it’s not a sure thing when the Pinellas County commission meets on Tuesday.

Ahead of Tuesday’s 2 p.m. meeting, the commission asked for proof that the Rays are still going to uphold their end of the bargain when it comes to the new stadium.

The Rays have to meet several conditions on funding and designs by March 31, or else they won’t be able to access the bonds that the commission is voting on Tuesday.

It’s unclear if that evidence from the Rays has been provided to the commission but when it comes to the vote, there is at least one commissioner on the fence about approving the bonds.

Commissioner Dave Eggers also stressed getting more information from the Rays at a workshop session last week.

“Perform what they’re supposed to perform and then this commissioner is likely to recognize the work that we did in July,” Eggers said.

Eggers was one of two no votes against the stadium project back in July.

But at last Thursday’s workshop, he said the commission should honor its prior commitments to the Rays with the deal that was previously approved.