World Series stadium talk

ST. PETERSBURG — Standing on the turf of Tropicana Field, marveling at the historic turnaround of the Tampa Bay Rays, principal owner Stu Sternberg acknowledged one major regret.

"Part of me wishes that I'd be playing this game on the waterfront tonight,'' Sternberg said moments before Wednesday's Game 1. "How unbelievable would downtown be? And how unbelievable would the city of St. Petersburg be … with all the parking, and all the walking, and all the stores, and all the restaurants, and the views, and the weather?"

Read the rest here.

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Comments

[get-smart]

Stu is itchy to sell. Pump and Dump. Too bad he doesn't have a fist full of new stadium contracts. Stu said "How does a guy make a buck around here?"

[Kathleen]

SIGN THE PETITIONS TO AMEND THE CITY CHARTER:
Go to www.stpetepoww.com, sign the petitions to amend the City's Charter to give us the right to vote on a new stadium. Sign the "Waterfront" Charter amendment petition to give taxpayers the right to vote on waterfront development. Sign the "Wallets" Charter amendment petition to give taxpayers the right to vote on the use of City assets for professional sports stadiums. Mail the petitions back to POWW!

[Trop Fan]

Hey Stu, if you want to play on the waterfront, then host Game 6 at Al Lang.

Problem solved.

Otherwise, shut up and build your own ballpark with your own money. We'll even give you the land, but not on our waterfront!!!

[Paul]

Let me help Stu with some of his comments, since he doesn't actually live here in St Pete and well, I have for 15 years:

'How unbelievable would downtown be?'

- i'm thinking it would be a disaster to the existing businesses in terms of parking and revenues.

'And how unbelievable would the city of St. Petersburg be'

- St Pete is already a great city, thanks but we don't need you trying to capitalize on the success others have built and potentially WalMarting our downtown with a mega structure.

' … with all the parking,'

- yeah, all that parking. people live and work in downtown now. they are the ones using 'all that parking'.

' and all the walking,'

- wow, people get to walk even further in the heat and rain?

' and all the stores, and all the restaurants,'

- from the way i understand it, the stores are vacant during most games.

' and the views, and the weather?,

- what views? oh you mean sitting in a well lit stadium trying to see the water or sailboats in the dark? and the weather, yeah, I don't even sit on my porch until mid-October and I live rather close to Al Lang.

So there you have it Stu. Please try to act grateful for the Ray's success and show just an ounce of enthusiasm. I know you want to pump the value of this team and sell it... but WE live here and will wind up paying for your mistakes... kinda like we are paying for your mistakes Wall Street.

[Ron]

How unbelievable it would have been to watch the ninth inning last night in the rain!!!

[Thomas]

There is a huge difference between supporting the Rays and loving this World Series run and using public money to build a new stadium.

They don't go together. Congrats to the Rays for what they've already done and what they might do next week.

BUT - if you want a new stadium, pay for it yourself.

The Congressional hearing today regarding the new Yankees Stadium tells us even more about the schemes used to scam public money into private profits for MLB.

Or as Mr. DeMause so eloquently stated it:
"Carrying forward a baseball tradition, MLB stadium hatchet man Bob DuPuy celebrated the Tampa Bay Rays' first World Series appearance last night by declaring that the team needs a new stadium. Rays owner Stuart Sternberg chimed in that his team "is unlikely to be successful if it's still in Tropicana Field in 10 years," in the words of the Wall Street Journal's Matthew Futterman. Of course, you could argue that the Rays are unlikely to be successful with a new stadium either - as Futterman notes, the Tampa economy is a disaster, and the team's fan base is tiny by baseball standards, both of which are going to make it hard to keep their young players once they're eligible for free agency. But it's a lot more fun (and potentially more lucrative) to blame the 18-year-old stadium than to blame MLB's skewed economic system."

Sorry MLB but you're SOL.

[A letter to Stu]

Stu,

Curious if you've been downtown over the past few weeks on a game night, and notice how perfectly the Trop "fits" in with downtown? Central Ave closed off for parties, yet we still have 2 one-way roads in 1st ave N/S to handle the traffic around it. 19 trolleys, shuttling fans to and fro, Fergs was packed beyond capacity.....and yet the people who live further downtown and all those folks who just wanted to come downtown for other entertainment options like a quiet dinner were all able to enjoy themselves.

If the stadium were waterfront in the core of downtown, it would have been chaos. No parking, and people who would have otherwise come downtown for something other than the game probably would have stayed home or went somewhere else. The Trop would have been rocking and the rest of downtown would have essentially been a ghost town.

Downtown "gels" with the Trop where it is. And the best part is, there is still plenty of room for growth, both on the Trop property as well as the area from 8th St to 20th St between I-175 and I-375.

Once the economy rebounds, think a convention hotel on the Trop property(The Rays & the City could make a killing on expanded trade shows/conventions/concerts on the 284 days it sits empty OFF SEARSON, if we had a world class convention style hotel ON SITE), think a few more condo/apt/office towers, and all the business that follows to support them.

Make downtown a pedestrian and trolley-friendly place, that can be as beautiful as the protected waterfront it sits on.

Let's take our time, recover from this national mess, discuss as a WHOLE community (not ABC-style), and allow all citizens the opportunity to vote on major changes like this going forward.

And Stu, I realize our goals are different. You want a custom built, self sufficient mini-city to control all revenue streams in and around your place of business to maximize profit margins and exponentially increase the value of your investment before you put it up for sale.

I simply want downtown to still be here 20 years from now and not look like the area around Fenway.

A letter to Stu -

Stick it! How much money do you have punk! I wouldn't let you or any of your low-life friends shine my shoes.

Do you know how much money I have? .. MILLIONS punk! Go On ... Beat it Jerk! There should be a law against you breathing the same air as me .. jerk. That's why I have a VIP Suite and you are out there with the vermin!

Remember punk .. I will always be rich and you will always be a loser!!

STEW

[JudyToo]

You know, I read this, tried it and I liked it.

Hope those POWW people get all the signatures they need because WE need the right to vote on anything that might affect our waterfront parks - any of them!
And for dessert, I signed the other petition that allows us to vote BEFORE anyone gets our money. Not that I have any left, but just in case....

Go to the site, print and sign the petitions. Put 'em in the mail. It feels good to know that if they pass, WE get to make the decisions around here, not "THEM."
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SIGN THE PETITIONS TO AMEND THE CITY CHARTER:
Go to www.stpetepoww.com, sign the petitions to amend the City's Charter to give us the right to vote on a new stadium. Sign the "Waterfront" Charter amendment petition to give taxpayers the right to vote on waterfront development. Sign the "Wallets" Charter amendment petition to give taxpayers the right to vote on the use of City assets for professional sports stadiums. Mail the petitions back to POWW!
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Quit wasting time posting here venting your frustrations. This is a perfect opportunity to invest a few minutes in your future. Sign up and put yourself in the driver's seat!

WE can and should be in control!

[get-smart]

Nov '09 vote in a city council and mayor that will support an amendment that requires all major city commitments to be in a referendum.

On the other hand, the state allows secret talks between the city and private business concerns. What ever the city initially agrees to, would be put to the voters & could potentially be undone and be politicized.

If every deal needs to be referendum vote, a lot of business' may not even consider St Pete as a place to move to.

What I don't care for are these private deals where the politicians enriching themselves at the taxpayers expense.

[Scaramouche]

Getsmart, one little caveat about the utility of the "secret deals" that are supposed to bring new business to Pinellas County.

How many recent examples do we have of "great deals" that end up with tax breaks, community costs and then presto-chango! Away goes the business, taking all those jobs and all the money that those "experts" that good old Ricky tells us we are supposed to just always trust, have shifted out of some prety obvious public needs into the pockets of Pie-In-The-Sky, Inc.

Maybe the taxpayers (including Joe the Plumber) don't need to be "given the business" via all those really smart secret handshakes.

[atrulyconcernedcitizen]

Get Smart,

The two amendments POWW is proposing are very, very specific and have gone through an incredibly long and tedious vetting process including city officials and attorneys both associated with and not associated with POWW.

The amendments were vetted so carefully so as to remove your concern..."If every deal needs to be referendum vote, a lot of business' may not even consider St Pete as a place to move to."

For example like it or hate it, the recent Jabil deal would NOT have been affected or required a vote. Specifically the amendments relate to park land and city expenditures or debt for professional sports facilities.

Any talk of these two amendments limiting city government or tying city staffer's hands is just a ruse! While I do NOT speak for POWW I can tell you that I know many of their members, including some of the most visible and outspoken ones who ADMIRE AND RESPECT the valuable work done by our city staff. They vary politically on their feelings about individual elected officials. But ALL agree that 8-9 folks should not be able to pressure staff or citizens into accepting LARGE changes in park land or corporate giveaways to sports franchises.

[Kat]

How about that rain and 40 degree weather in Philly? What a mess! Sloppy ball. Can you say pneumonia?

[Kat]

Can you say RAIN DELAY? How about that Philly Chamber moment? times 2!

[atrulyconcernedcitizen]

Aaron,

Could you do us a favor and report on the specific financial effect the post season has had on the budgets of the Rays and the City of St. Petersburg?

Obviously the Rays have made some bucks on the post season...good for them...they make the playoffs they deserve to earn some more money. I'm mainly curious as to whether the additional games have meant additional expense for the city operationally, or whether the city's share of parking and tickets makes that a net break even or even perhaps a net profit for the city.

[anonymous]

This just sucks the joy out of watching the Rays for me now.

Besides, if you think about it, if the Rays go on to lose the series it will be due, in part, to an outdoor stadium.

Careful what you wish for...

In the Financial Category for best supporting role:

The Winner IS .... (drum roll)... FERG'S

[sabine]

I wonder if Mr. Sternberg still feels that way after the fiasco in Philadelphia the past 2 nights. A covered stadium sure looks good now!!

And, Bud Selig is an idiot for even letting last night's game start. For TV revenues, he risked the careers of every player on both teams. Baseball is definitely America's pastime. Greed is alive and well.

[Kat]

Selig is an idiot-total disregard for the athletes.

[Nothing ever changes here]

Had not come on this blog site for awhile
glad to see it's mostly the same old community food fight it's always been.

[Nothing ever changes here]

Had not come on this blog site for awhile
glad to see it's mostly the same old community food fight it's always been.

[Since1962]

Read the 2 proposed amendments offered by POWW and decide for yourself. We did then signed two sets and mailed.
The city has shown a blatant disregard for the many community meetings, charrettes, and petitions thus far so we must force the issue to a vote and allow the citizens to direct this one aspect of our development directly.

[Scaramouche]

Selig is NOT an idiot -- just a greedy old man. He's done a great job of shafting the public for his own gain and for a steadily growing transfer of wealth to MLB, Inc. and all its antitrust-exempt tentacles. The game must go on, especially if the FOX people were foxy enough to include penalty or rebate provisions in their deal for TV "rights" to the broadcast.

How much clearer can Selig and those folks make the contempt they have for the rest of us? The condescension and contempt they have for "the fans?" The conviction that they have the God-gave-me-my-money right to turn the National Pastime into a partly inelastic-demand product like gasoline, where the price and "value" can be manipulated largely at will?