St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch has selected the Tampa Bay Rays and Hines team to redevelop the 86-acre Tropicana Field/Gas Plant site – which will be the most impactful catalytic project to occur in the city.
Welch made the announcement Monday in front of City Hall to a sea of media members and residents anticipating the long-awaited decision on who will control the fate of the massive site.
The decision comes after the city received the evaluation report from HR&A, the third-party consultant hired by the city, that weighed the strengths and weaknesses of each of the four development teams, putting the Tampa Bay Rays and Hines joint proposal and the Sugar Hill Community Partners proposal at the top of the list. The two teams checked the boxes for many of the city’s requirements and needs as the other two contenders – Restoration Associates and 50 Plus 1 Sports – lacked certain information in their proposals. Read more
