Another Phillies ballpark proposal is ‘relatively imminent’ 

Pinellas County’s other stadium saga could soon have a resolution as the Philadelphia Phillies are preparing to present their latest plans for BayCare Ballpark. 

The team has proposed ambitious renovation and redevelopment projects at the spring training site, which is also home to a minor league affiliate, the Clearwater Threshers, since 2019. County Commissioners and the Tourist Development Council (TDC) heard a brief, yet long-awaited update on the evolving plans at a joint meeting Sept. 11. 

Once-paused discussions between the Phillies, Clearwater officials and County Administrator Barry Burton have resumed. However, he said “nothing is public yet” and there is “much more to come.” 

“They’re looking for a major improvement for a facility that hasn’t had those major improvements in many, many years,” Burton said. “They’ve done a lot of work to really get serious and zero in on the project needs.”

A longtime TDC member told Burton that he has “a pretty friendly group here,” and asked how much the Phillies would request from bed tax coffers. Burton said the discussion was public and did not answer. 

The joint workshop, held at the Sheraton Sand Key Resort, was not streamed. The Catalyst obtained an audio recording. 

Burton said the team and officials lacked engineering drawings and cost estimates last year. The Phillies have since “zeroed in on what they needed to do as an organization.” 

When asked if it was “relatively imminent” that Burton would provide that information to the TDC, he succinctly said, “Yes.” He added that “it’s a very different project, even from a year ago.” 

Burton said the entire facility needs significant upgrades, with many required by Major League Baseball. The Phillies have also made several improvements – “because they had to.” 

One of those is a large tent that serves as a makeshift dining room. “It’s kind of hard to have $300 million players eat at their locker,” Burton said. 

Flooding at BayCare Ballpark following an unprecedented hurricane season.

Hurricane damage and the Rays

Mayor Bruce Rector said the City of Clearwater “spent $85 million in taxpayers’ money to get ready for spring training and spring break.” Commissioner Chris Latvala asked him to elaborate, and said it was a “little iffy if they were even going to be able to play” at BayCare Ballpark.

Rector explained that a nearby creek inundated the stadium with three to four feet of water following back-to-back hurricanes. Repairs took “significant work,” and the city “had to get on it right away and make some decisions early on … to do some things creatively to get it done by spring training.”

“They were still painting when the players arrived for spring training,” Rector added. “It was that close, but it was critically important for us to do that. We spent quite a bit of money.” 

While the repairs were a “considerable expense,” he did not provide a figure. Latvala asked if the Phillies contributed to the cost. “Yes, they did,” Rector replied. “Significantly.” 

In November 2024, three months before spring training, Rector admonished the Tampa Bay Rays for choosing to play the 2025 season at Tampa’s Steinbrenner Field rather than a smaller, storm-damaged BayCare Ballpark, with exponentially fewer amenities. 

Tropicana Field suffered about $75 million in damage during Hurricane Milton and will not reopen until 2026. The Rays chose Steinbrenner Field after determining that they “could not get BayCare Ballpark into a condition where it could host Major League Baseball by Opening Day in March.” 

“It’s vividly clear that the Tampa Bay Rays do not care about this county,” Rector said in November. “I wonder at times about the City of St. Petersburg – if they’re only over here because this is where the money is at.” 

Rector’s comments came the morning after commissioners first postponed voting on a bond issuance to finance their $312.5 million contribution to a new Rays stadium. The money would also have come from bed taxes, a 6% surcharge on overnight stays that can only fund projects that increase tourism.

The Rays would eventually exit the stadium deal, and partially blamed the county’s delay. 

While Rector was critical of the impact Tampa Bay’s only MLB franchise has on Pinellas, he pontificated on the importance of Philadelphia’s spring training site and minor league team at the Sept. 11 meeting. 

“It’s about the Phillies, but it’s not about the Phillies,” Rector said. “It’s about the City of Clearwater, our community and maintaining this long-term history. And improving our city’s asset to be a leading spring training city.”

He added that sports tourism is recession-proof, and spring training provides much-needed “focus-driven travel.” Rector asked the commission and TDC to support the project and “maintain that long tradition.”

Evolving plans

In 2019, the Phillies requested $40 million from local bed tax coffers to complete nearly $80 million in upgrades. Commissioners rebuffed that proposal for what was then a 15-year-old stadium. 

Undeterred, the team then proposed transforming the site into a $300 million, year-round player development facility in 2022. Ownership updated their plans to include a $250 million mixed-use complex dubbed Ballpark Village after acquiring 13 acres just south of the stadium for $22.5 million in November 2023. 

In 2024, former Mayor Brian Aungst St. said the Phillies paused the massive project due to an ownership change. He expected an estimated $65 million proposal that focused on stadium upgrades. 

“It’s been on your agenda because it’s changed as many times as it’s been on your agenda,” Burton said at the workshop. “And thank goodness, because where they were a year ago, and the things they wanted to do – Major League Baseball has changed, and their contract with their minor league players changed … Now they’re very specific.”