Tampa Bay Rays’ $2.36 Billion Stadium Gets Final Approval—With $876 Million From Local Government

After decades of failed proposals, relocation questions and hurricane disruption, the Tampa Bay Rays finally have an approved path to a permanent new home—and local governments are committing $876 million to help build it.

The Hillsborough County Commission voted 5-2 on Friday, August 28, to approve a $796 million county contribution to the planned $2.36 billion stadium and surrounding development. That vote followed the Tampa City Council’s narrow 4-3 approval of an additional $80 million one day earlier.

Together, the decisions complete the major local approvals needed for the Rays to move toward construction of a fixed-roof ballpark on Hillsborough College’s Dale Mabry campus. The stadium is expected to open for the 2029 Major League Baseball season.

Who is paying for the $2.36 billion stadium?

According to financial details reported by Reuters, the city will provide $80 million and Hillsborough County will provide $796 million. The Rays are responsible for approximately $1.37 billion and all construction cost overruns.

The Associated Press reported that another $30 million will come from federal disaster-recovery funds. The final project includes more than the ballpark: plans call for a mixed-use entertainment district and renovations to parts of the Hillsborough College campus.

The county will own the stadium. The Rays will pay $4 million annually in rent and enter an initial 35-year use agreement containing a no-relocation commitment, according to Reuters.

That provision is significant for a franchise whose long-term future in the Tampa Bay region has repeatedly been questioned. The agreement is designed to keep the team in the area for decades rather than simply finance another short-term venue.

A new home in Tampa—not St. Petersburg

The stadium site sits on Hillsborough College’s Dale Mabry campus in Tampa, next to the New York Yankees’ spring-training facility and across Dale Mabry Highway from Raymond James Stadium, home of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The planned venue is being described as a 31,000-seat stadium. Reuters reported that the agreement requires a minimum of 28,000 seats and a fixed roof, an important feature in Florida’s heat, humidity and summer storms.

That location also represents a major geographic shift. Since joining Major League Baseball in 1998, the Rays have played their permanent home games at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, on the opposite side of Tampa Bay.

The team briefly moved its 2025 home schedule to George M. Steinbrenner Field after hurricane damage made Tropicana Field unavailable. The Rays returned to the Trop for the 2026 season, but their current use agreement extends only through the end of 2028.

The clock is already running toward 2029

Approval does not mean the stadium is built. Construction must begin this fall to keep the project on schedule for opening day in 2029, Reuters reported.

The timeline leaves little room for extended delays. The Rays need the new venue ready when their current Tropicana Field agreement ends, while the team’s responsibility for overruns places the financial risk of higher construction costs largely on ownership.

Rays managing partner Patrick Zalupski called the county vote an extraordinary milestone and declared, “Forever starts now.” Rays CEO Ken Babby said the partnership secures Major League Baseball’s long-term future in Tampa Bay.

The Rays’ official MLB coverage also confirmed the final county approval and described the new stadium as the franchise’s “Forever Home.”

Why this deal succeeded after earlier plans failed

The Rays have pursued a replacement for Tropicana Field for years. A previous $1.3 billion redevelopment plan for a new St. Petersburg ballpark collapsed in 2025, reopening questions about whether the franchise could remain in the region.

The current proposal uses a different city, college-owned site and financing structure. It also arrives under the ownership group led by Zalupski, which purchased the franchise in September 2025 and made securing a permanent stadium its central priority.

The split votes show that the public contribution remains consequential and contested. Tampa approved its portion by one vote, while two Hillsborough County commissioners opposed the county package. Supporters argue the agreement anchors the Rays, remakes the college campus and builds a broader mixed-use district; the scale of public funding ensures scrutiny will continue as construction advances.

What happens next

The immediate milestones are finalizing project details, preparing the Dale Mabry site and beginning construction before the fall deadline. The Rays must then deliver the ballpark by 2029 while covering overruns beyond the agreed financing.

For fans, the most important outcome is now clear: after years of uncertainty, the Rays are positioned to leave Tropicana Field, cross the bay into Tampa and play under a new fixed roof—with a 35-year promise not to leave the region.