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Tourist Panel Skeptical Of Rays' Tax Request

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By CARLOS MONCADA

The Tampa Tribune

Published: June 12, 2008

CLEARWATER - A new Tampa Bay Rays stadium on St. Petersburg's downtown waterfront would draw tens of thousands of additional visitors here to vacation, shop and dine, the team's president told a tourism panel Wednesday.

But members of Pinellas County's Tourist Development Council cast a skeptical eye on the Rays' request for $100 million in tourist taxes to help finance the team's proposed $450 million ballpark.

Some said their decision will come down to which benefits tourism the most - a new ballpark or renourishing beaches and promoting tourism.

Several tourism board members said after the meeting that they need more information from the Rays before making a recommendation to the county commission, which has final say.

"Right now, without a lot of information, that requires a pretty big leap of faith," said tourism council Chairman Bob Stewart, who also is chairman of the county commission.

"What we're trying to do is get information and eliminate the faith factor and make it the decision based on facts."

Stewart said the 12-member tourism board appeared split on the Rays' funding request, adding, "I'm not sure the Rays have the lead at this stage of the game."

The 1-cent tax on hotel beds is now used to help retire the debt service on Tropicana Field and is set to expire in 2015. The Rays want to extend the tax, paid primarily by tourists, for 30 years starting in 2017, applying the proceeds toward the new ballpark.

The remaining $350 million of the stadium's cost would be covered by a $150 million contribution from the Rays, $70 million from the developer who buys Tropicana Field for redevelopment, $75 million from extending St. Petersburg's contribution to paying off the dome, and $55 million in ballpark-related parking revenue.

The tourist development council is scheduled to recommend on July 9 either supporting or rejecting the Rays' tourist-taxes request to the county commission, which would make a final decision July 22. The St. Petersburg City Council last week voted to begin the process for scheduling a citywide referendum Nov. 4 on a new downtown stadium and is to take final action Aug. 7.

"A big part of our draw in the new ballpark will be visitors from out of town who make this a part of their vacation," Rays President Matt Silverman told the tourism panel. "They see it on TV first or read about it and then they come here to experience it, and hopefully you also get that effect of having that recurring visitor. That's what baseball can do."

Last year, the Rays sold 300,000 tickets to buyers who were from outside the Tampa Bay area, from places such as Boston, New York, Chicago, Cleveland and Detroit, Silverman said.

"It will be a destination," he said, drawing comparisons to Oriole Park at Camden Yards, next to Baltimore's popular Inner Harbor. "Today, Tropicana Field serves its purpose, but it's not a destination. It doesn't draw people in, and it doesn't highlight our area."

Board members wanted to know how much out-of-town fans now spend outside Tropicana Field at shops, hotels, restaurants and attractions. Silverman said the team is working to get those figures.

"We need to know what the Rays are producing in terms of tourism dollars to the community," said Tim Bogott, president and chief executive of TradeWinds Island Resorts in St. Pete Beach. "And then we need to have some kind of an estimate of what that would be with the new stadium."

Silverman suggested there would be enough money for all tourism needs: a new ballpark, renourishing beaches and promoting tourism. He said extending the bed tax for 30 years would create a surplus of about $140 million that could be used for tourism-related projects.

Board member Jody Armstrong was not convinced.

"I really need to see some hard facts," said the mayor of Redington Shores. "And hard numbers and serious dollar numbers before we can make a sound decision."

News Channel 8 reporter Rod Challenger contributed to this report. Reporter Carlos Moncada can be reached at (727) 451-233 or cmoncada@tampatrib.com.

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