Plan outlined for new Tampa Bay Rays ballpark, redevelopment

By CURT ANDERSON
Associated Press

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — A new Tampa Bay Rays ballpark will be built as part of a massive redevelopment project in what was once a thriving Black neighborhood. Mayor Ken Welch of St. Petersburg, Florida, chose a partnership Monday between the Rays and the Houston-based Hines development company from among four proposals to transform an 86-acre downtown site where Tropicana Field now sits. The plan also includes affordable housing, office space, retail, hotel rooms, an entertainment venue and a new Woodson African American Museum of Florida. Welch says the idea is to create a destination for people who come to Rays games and to build a new community.