Taxpayers want public facilities fixed, not money spent on this stadium deal

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After a devastating hurricane season, it is time for the St. Petersburg City Council and Pinellas County Board of County Commissioners to reexamine their priorities.

Earlier this year, the City and County approved contracts with the Tampa Bay Rays and Hines Development teams to build a new baseball stadium and redevelop 86 acre of the Historic Gas Plant District in downtown St. Petersburg. This deal is expected to cost St. Petersburg and Pinellas County anywhere from $600 million (the City and County’s projection) to $2.4 billion (according to Florida Tax Watch). However, the County Commissioners and City Councilmembers must still vote to finance the deal through the sale of municipal bonds.

It is not too late for our elected officials to vote no to the proposed billion-dollar debt needed to pay for the stadium. The County Commissioners are expected to vote on the issue Nov. 19, and City Council is expected to vote Nov. 21.  City Council members and County Commissioners should vote no, and send the agreements back to the City to be rebalanced in favor of taxpayers. 

Heavy summer downpours and Hurricanes Helene and Milton exposed St. Petersburg’s aged infrastructure and its inability to handle increasing rainfalls and storm surge. One need look no further than the City’s collapsed seawalls, water main breaks, boil water notices and water restrictions to prevent sewage backup to understand St. Petersburg’s pressing infrastructure needs. It will cost the City millions to repair seawalls that were damaged due to Hurricane Milton, and the City’s recent “Discussion of Known Capital Improvement Need 30-year Forecast” presented to the Public Service and Infrastructure Committee on April 11, 2024 calls for approximately $5 billion in water, sewage and stormwater improvements. The problem is the City doesn’t have the money. It will have to incur more debt to ensure residents have safe drinking water, streets don’t flood in a heavy summer shower, and toilets don’t back up during a storm.  

Sadly, Hurricane Milton also caused the stadium situation to worsen as well. 

City taxpayers are now on the hook for $6.5 million to stabilize the storm-damaged Tropicana Field. On November 21, the St. Petersburg City Council will discuss a recent report that found it will cost an additional $55.7 million minimum to repair Tropicana Filed in time for the 2026 season, only for the Rays to demolish the stadium after two seasons in order to build a $1.3 billion ballpark.

Economic studies prove that using public money to pay for the debt on stadiums always results in more taxes or fewer public services, or both. Councilmember Lisset Hanewicz asked the independent Florida Tax Watch to analyze the stadium deal.  Florida Tax Watch determined “that the deal’s total costs to the City and County would be nearly $2.4 billion, rather than the estimated $600 million.” Additionally, Florida Tax Watch found that “to mitigate risk and balance the interests of the Tampa Bay Rays and local taxpayers”, the deal should require (1) the Rays to share revenues with the City as they do now; (2) a claw-back provision if the economic benefit falls short of the developers’ promises; (3) the ballpark contract should include provisions that sufficiently deter the Rays from relocating.

None of Florida Tax Watch’s recommendations were added to the final contracts. 

And like the County, St. Petersburg will be left with no choice but to increase fees and taxes and/or cut services to pay for the necessary infrastructure improvements to provide basic necessities such as water and sewage.  

The increased public debt will fall on residents who are already facing increasing insurance costs and many who have just lost their homes, cars, possessions and jobs. Any tax increase or service cut will just make their burdens heavier.     

City Councilmembers and County Commissioners should vote no to reject the bond debts for this baseball stadium deal. It is fiscally irresponsible to increase the debt burden on residents to pay for a stadium that experts have determined will provide an inadequate return on investment to taxpayers, especially considering the extensive and critical repairs we must make to our aging and damaged infrastructure. There is still time for our elected officials to make the right decision. Our City’s future depends on it. 

The League of Women Voters, a nonpartisan political organization, encourages informed and active participation in government, works to increase understanding of major public policy issues, and influences public policy through education and advocacy. To learn more about our work on the stadium deal, visit our website at https://lwvspa.org/social-justice/.