Know
Meet the team: Restoration Associates
Press the play triangle above to watch the video interview.
In this series we’ll meet some of the teams that are vying to develop the Historic Gas Plant District site.
Representing the Restoration Associates team in this installment:
Dr. William Henry – RGA Design
Paula Barca – RGA Design
Shirley Hayes
December 26, 2022at9:59 am
Then after all of this, lets just build a convention center and let the Rays go to Tampa or wherever. I am over this. I do not see where we benefited economically by the Rays being here. Before and after the games, did our business establishments benefit???Please someone tell us this. I know that the Black businesses did Not benefit at all.
Dick Pierce
December 25, 2022at7:14 am
Joe – thanks for doing this – esp. as a lead-up to the Jan 4th public presentations. I can’t wait for sessions/bidders #3 and #4, esp. Sugar Hill. These very good, appreciated interviews are, for each bidder, their finest and most un-inpeded, hours. They are all great public-speaking-yarn-spinners, all great proponents of their view/ideas – great for an opinion/talk show – but not really directional or helpful as to how and with what did they respond to the RFP questions, requests, terms – as they were requested/required. Artful, informed rhetoric and un-directed experience and ideas, flowing like honey to bears lapping it up. Let’s hope that the last two bidders will actually tell you of their response, what they’ll address and commit to. Thanks for doing it.
HAL FREEDMAN
December 24, 2022at5:01 pm
There are 4 bids, but one of the bidders is “holding a gun to our heads.” The Rays/Hines team has a serious conflict of interest, since the Rays will get 50% of the development proceeds, giving them an advantage over the other bidders. In addition, if the city picks a bidder other than the Rays group, the team is likely to leave. Since the Mayor insists on a stadium for all bidders, if the Rays lose (and leave), we’ll have an empty stadium taking up a lot of acreage that could be better used.
All of that added to their recent discussions with Tampa about the Ybor site, suggest we let the Rays leave, possibly wait until 2027 to develop the Gas Plant site, so the Rays do not get development proceeds, and concentrate on more important issues. The Rays are loyal to no one…players, fans, or St. Petersburg.