Florida county approves deal to build a new Tampa Bay Rays stadium

CLEARWATER, Fla. (AP) — The Tampa Bay Rays have the government backing they need to build a long-sought-after ballpark after the Pinellas County Commissioners approved on Tuesday the west-central Florida county's share of the funding for the 30,000-seat stadium.

The county voted 5-2 to approve spending about $312.5 million for its share of the ballpark costs from revenue generated by a bed tax that can only be spent on tourist-related and economic development expenses. The St. Petersburg City Council approved spending $417.5 million for the stadium earlier this month.

The $1.3 billion ballpark will guarantee the team stays put for at least 30 years. It's part of a broader $6.5 billion redevelopment project that supporters say would transform an 86-acre (34-hectare) tract in the city’s downtown, with plans in the coming years for a Black history museum, affordable housing, a hotel, green space, entertainment venues, and office and retail space. There’s the promise of thousands of jobs as well.

“This is so much more than a baseball stadium. It is poised to become, if we do it right, a world-class tourist destination,” said Commissioner Janet Long. “It’s more than about the baseball stadium. It’s a transformational, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,”

The linchpin of the project is the planned roofed stadium, scheduled to open for the 2028 season. It caps years of uncertainty about the Rays’ future, including possible moves across the bay to Tampa, or to Nashville, Tennessee, or even to split home games between St. Petersburg and Montreal, an idea Major League Baseball rejected.

The rest of the project would mainly be funded by a partnership between the Rays and the Houston-based Hines global development company. It will take decades to complete.

The site, where the Rays’ domed, tilted Tropicana Field and its expansive parking lots now sit, was once a thriving Black community displaced by construction of the ballpark and an interstate highway. St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch says one of his priorities is to right some of those past wrongs in what is known as the Historic Gas Plant District.

The Rays typically draw among the lowest attendance in MLB, even though the team has made the playoffs five years in a row. This year, the Rays have a 54-52 record, placing them fourth in the American League East division.

The ballpark plan is part of a wave of construction or renovation projects at sports venues across the country, including the Milwaukee Brewers, Buffalo Bills, Tennessee Titans, Jacksonville Jaguars and the Oakland Athletics, who are planning to relocate to Las Vegas. Like the Rays proposal, all the projects come with millions of dollars in public funding that usually draws opposition.

A citizen group called No Home Run and other organizations opposed the deal, with the conservative/libertarian Americans for Prosperity contending the track record for other publicly financed sports stadiums is not encouraging.

County Commissioner Chris Latvala said he's a huge baseball fan and recounted many fond memories of following the Rays, but he still voted against the project.

“I want professional baseball to stay here, I want the Rays to stay here, but at what price?” he said. “This will be a $1 billion publicly funded subsidy to a billionaire. I'm not willing to put my name on that.”

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch visits with Pinellas County Commissioner Janet Long while attending a meeting of the Pinellas County commissioners on Tuesday, July 30, 2024, where they voted for funding for a new Tampa Bay Rays ballpark, in Clearwater, Fla. (Douglas R. Clifford/Tampa Bay Times via AP)

St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch visits with Pinellas County Commissioner Janet Long moments after the Pinellas County commissioners voted to fund the new Tampa Bay Rays ballpark during a meeting Tuesday, July 30, 2024, in Clearwater, Fla. (Douglas R. Clifford/Tampa Bay Times via AP)

Brian Auld, co-president of the Tampa Bay Rays, smiles moments after the Pinellas County commissioners voted to fund the a new Tampa Bay Rays ballpark during a meeting Tuesday, July 30, 2024, in Clearwater, Fla. (Douglas R. Clifford/Tampa Bay Times via AP)

Brian Auld, co-president of the Tampa Bay Rays, attends a meeting of the Pinellas County commissioners on Tuesday, July 30, 2024, in Clearwater, Fla., where they voted for funding for a new Tampa Bay Rays ballpark. (Douglas R. Clifford/Tampa Bay Times via AP)

Peter Kent, a licensed professional engineer of St. Petersburg, discusses a spreadsheet he says details city and county investments and promised returns into the Rays-Hines stadium deal at a meeting of the Pinellas County commissioners Tuesday, July 30, 2024, in Clearwater, Fla., where they voted for funding for a new Tampa Bay Rays ballpark. (Douglas R. Clifford/Tampa Bay Times via AP)

Pinellas County Commissioner Rene Flowers attends a meeting of the Pinellas County commissioners on Tuesday, July 30, 2024, in Clearwater, Fla., where they voted for funding for a new Tampa Bay Rays ballpark. (Douglas R. Clifford/Tampa Bay Times via AP)

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Tyreek Hill of the Miami Dolphins was handcuffed and placed face down on a street outside the team's stadium after he was stopped for speeding and reckless driving Sunday morning before the Dolphins' first game of the season, an incident that left the star wide receiver baffled and resulted in a police officer being placed on administrative leave.

The officer, who was not identified, was one of at least three involved in detaining Hill. Some fans saw Hill being handcuffed and captured video on their way to the game, and it quickly went viral on social media.

Miami-Dade Police director Stephanie V. Daniels said she had launched an internal affairs investigation.

Told after the game that the officer was placed on leave pending the outcome of the investigation, Hill said: “That should tell you everything you need to know.”

Added defensive tackle Calais Campbell, who was also briefly handcuffed after coming to his teammate’s aid: “That makes sense based on the situation.”

Hill, who said he respects police officers and wants to be one when he retires from football, said he “had no idea” why police placed him in handcuffs.

“I wasn’t disrespectful because my mom didn’t raise me that way,” Hill said. “Didn’t cuss. Didn’t do none of that. Like I said, I’m still trying to figure it out, man.”

Hill starred on the field for the Dolphins, catching seven passes for 130 yards — including an 80-yard touchdown that helped Miami rally for a 20-17 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars. Hill celebrated the score by mimicking being handcuffed.

Hill, who is Black, said he didn't want to use his celebrity to get out of the situation but wondered what would’ve happened if he weren’t an NFL star.

“I don’t want to bring race into it, but sometimes it gets kind of iffy when you do,” he said. “What if I wasn’t Tyreek Hill? Lord knows what that guy or guys would have done. I was just making sure that I was doing what my uncle always told me to do whenever you’re in a situation like that: ‘Just listen, put your hands on the steering wheel and just listen.’”

Daniels said in a statement earlier Sunday that she requested an “immediate review” of the details surrounding the incident, adding that the department would review available body camera footage.

In a later statement, Daniels said: “I'm committed to transparency and accountability to the community with any situation involving my officers."

Hill said everything happened so fast it caught him off guard.

“I’m just glad that my teammates were there to support me in that situation because I felt alone,” Hill added.

Campbell said he was driving into Hard Rock Stadium when he saw Hill handcuffed, and he stopped to help. The 17-year NFL veteran ended up in handcuffs as well, saying officers told him it was because he disobeyed their direct orders.

“I’d seen, I feel like excessive force, so I get out of the car to kind of just try to de-escalate the situation,” Campbell said, also calling the incident “a bit extreme.”

Hill, who led the NFL in receiving yards in 2023, said he spoke to his wife and family after he was detained and before the game kicked off.

His agent, Drew Rosenhaus, called it a “heartbreaking situation” on ESPN.

“How things escalated into the situation that they were in, in handcuffs and being held on the ground with police, is mindboggling to me,” Rosenhaus said. "I'm deeply concerned by that. Very troubled. We will be looking into it. We will be investigating this. We will look out for Tyreek, but I'm not going to make any allegations at this time. The most important thing is Tyreek is OK physically, mentally he was very distraught about what happened.”

NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said the league has been in contact with the Dolphins, but declined to comment further.

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill (10) grabs a pass for a touchdown during the second half of an NFL football game against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill (10) scores a touchdown during the second half of an NFL football game against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill (10) gestures during the second half of an NFL football game against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. The Dolphins defeated the Jaguars 20-17. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill gestures after an NFL football game against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. The Dolphins defeated the Jaguars 20-17. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill speaks during an NFL football post game news conference, Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. The Dolphins defeated the Jaguars 20-17. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Jacksonville Jaguars cornerback Ronald Darby (25) defends Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill (10) during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill (10) listens to agent Drew Rosenhous before NFL football game against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill (10) enters the field before an NFL football game against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)