Baseball fans entering Tropicana Field have likely walked over human remains. Photo by Mark Parker.
St. Petersburg will excavate possible graves found underneath Tropicana Field’s parking lots. However, the next step in a long-overdue process must wait until the baseball season concludes in October.
City council members unanimously approved a $380,000 architectural and engineering contract on Thursday with Stantec. The firm will provide archaeological ground truthing fieldwork, management services, and a subsequent report.
Stantec delivered its initial, much-anticipated study to Mayor Ken Welch’s administration in November 2024 after using ground-penetrating radar to uncover 10 possible graves – some just three feet below ground – at the Trop. The findings remained hidden from the public until April 2025.
While the firm also found 11 areas of interest and nine unidentified disturbances, confirming the results requires exhuming remains. Council Chair Lisset Hanewicz requested a brief update on Thursday after residents reached out with concerns.
“Once anything as part of this exploratory analysis is identified, the first step is to stop work and contact the state (archaeological) officer,” said Brejesh Prayman, engineering and capital improvements director. “And then that’s a regulated process governed by Florida Statutes.”
Planning Director Derek Kilborn noted that city research at the site began in early 2020. Ground penetrating radar first identified three likely graves beneath Lots 1 and 2 at the Trop in August 2021.
The area was once home to Oaklawn Cemetery, established in 1907 between 3rd and 5th Avenues South, west of 16th Street. It predominantly served white residents.
Evergreen Cemetery, platted in 1900 to serve the Black community, now sits under I-175. Both races were interred at Moffett (St. Petersburg) Cemetery, which opened in 1888 at the intersection of 16th Street and 5th Avenue South.
Ground penetrating radar first identified three possible graves between Lots 1 and 2 in August 2021. Photo by Mark Parker.
The city condemned the contiguous burial grounds in 1926 and relocated bodies according to race. African Americans were moved to the embattled Lincoln Cemetery in Gulfport. Their Caucasian counterparts stayed closer to home at Royal Palm Cemetery.
City research has focused on Oaklawn Cemetery, as it was “the site most ready for that type of work,” Kilborn said. “And it also was the most timely, because of the ongoing discussion at the time with the Tampa Bay Rays.”
Kilborn said the previous report helped align potential graves with historical records. He also noted that the city lacks burial information for multiple anomalous areas, including two purchased by a Masonic Lodge.
“These are some of the challenges we’ll have in working with individuals and individual families and descendants,” Kilborn added. “Sometimes we just won’t know.”
St. Petersburg is home to several Masonic Lodges, and Councilmember Deborah Figgs-Sanders asked if officials could identify a specific branch. “They may not know, and it would be great for them to have that information,” she said.
Kilborn could not provide an answer. However, he will “certainly look into it” and share what he finds with the council.
Stantec’s previous study area was limited due to roads and redevelopment negotiations. Image: Stantec.
Agenda documents state that Stantec will now conduct soft digging up to a maximum of 15 feet, sift material samples, and identify and catalogue any found remains or artifacts. Officials expect onsite ground truthing and excavations to take 10 business days.
“This task will involve investigation of at least four operation areas through the property with the highest probability of cemetery features, as well as 10 possible graves,” states the agreement. “All 10 graves will be stripped to reveal the outline of the grave shaft, and their locations and dimensions will be mapped.
“Of these graves, at least four will be excavated by hand down to the coffin, in order to confirm that human remains are present.”
The agreement adds that Stantec will complete the work by the 2026 baseball season’s opening day. While the Rays will return to the Trop on April 6, that timeline has changed significantly.
Stantec will now begin archaeological excavations in late October. “Hopefully, based on the timeline, this work won’t happen until after the conclusion of the World Series,” Kilborn said.
“Stantec recommends that no ground-truthing or other archaeological work be conducted without first consulting with potential descendants and stakeholder groups connected to Oaklawn Cemetery,” states the previous report.
“The goal of such work would be to confirm the presence of intact burials and gain a better understanding of the potential for disturbed human remains within the property – and of the distribution of burials and human remains across the property.”
City officials did not discuss outreach efforts – or current proposals to redevelop the site – during the brief presentation on Thursday.
More Photos
An outline of possible grave sites. Image: Stantec
A graphic highlighting the subject area’s evolution. Image: City documents.
A graphic highlighting likely burials and areas of interest. Image: Stantec.
A timeline of the city’s involvement. Image: City documents.
Share Your News with Us
To share news with the Power Broker, connect with reachout@powerbrokermagazine.com. To sign up for our twice-weekly e-newsletter, visit www.powerbrokermagazine.com; and to join our online conversation, subscribe to our YouTube channel at Power Broker Media Group – YouTube.
