ST. PETERSBURG — The biggest feature that stands out about the Tampa Bay Rays’ planned new stadium is how small they want it to feel.
Physically in the size and structure, by building only 30,000 fixed seats under a tiered, pavilion-style roof that eliminates the cavernous open space of other domed stadiums.
And visually in the design, by bringing fans closer to the action from all directions, with 70% of the seats in the lower two of three seating levels and a vast reduction in foul territory from all sides.
“The coolest part,” Rays president Matt Silverman said, “is how close the fans will be to the field and how close a connection they’ll feel to the game that’s being played … creating an energy and an intimacy that doesn’t exist in baseball.”
The Rays this week unveiled their first detailed renderings and shared specific features of the $1.3 billion stadium they seek to build adjacent to their current Tropicana Field home as part of the massive multi-stage redevelopment of the Historic Gas Plant District.
St. Petersburg City Council members will discuss the stadium in an upcoming workshop session and, along with the Pinellas County Commission, are expected to vote on their share of the funding around mid-July. The Rays have said they will pay $700 million, plus cost overruns, with the city and county splitting the rest.
Since the plan was announced in September, the Rays have been hinting at a series of elements that would make the new fixed-roof, artificial-turf stadium they plan to open in 2028 stand well apart from their current home and the 29 other big-league ballparks.
That includes the use of glass in some upper and lower walls to provide daylight and allow fans to see in and out; full 360-degree circulation inside with sight of the field from all concourses; a covered “porch” area outside the stadium; 365-days-a-year programming to make the facility and adjacent entertainment district a community gathering spot (such as a pavilion); and the fan-friendly intimate design.
“Overall, I think the Rays have a fantastic vision for this being really unlike anything else in Major League Baseball,” said Zach Allee, principal architect for the Populous firm.
Here are some of the highlights.
On the outside
Second Avenue S will be the main pre- and postgame hub and pedestrian pathway between shops and restaurants on the outfield side of the stadium leading to the entertainment district that will include a concert venue and museum.
The main entrance will be through leftfield. Because of the natural slope of the site, fans will enter on the main concourse and walk down to their seats, with roughly 15,000 in the lower bowl.
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Explore all your optionsIn building the stadium as the hub of an 86-acre work-live-play development, officials wanted to make it fit in aesthetically with the neighborhood.
They feel they accomplished that with the porch (that provides shade and rain covering) 60 feet above ground level, and the narrowing scope of the pavilion-style roof that tops out at 240 feet.
Unlike other ballpark entertainment districts that stand alone, such as Atlanta’s popular Battery site, the Rays want to meld into the existing St. Petersburg community. Parts of the stadium, as well as the team store, some restaurants and a brewery-type bar, are planned to be open year-round.
“There’s going to be activity in this plaza 365 days a year, whether there’s a baseball game or an event going on in the venue or the concert venue,” Silverman said. “That’s something that is missing from downtown St. Pete, that central gathering spot away from the waterfront. And this ballpark connected to the development will provide that.”
On the inside
One noticeable difference from Tropicana Field is how the tiered roof will be low over the seating areas and only high over the field of play. (And high enough, the Rays insist after extensive modeling based on game data, to not impact play like the Trop catwalks do.)
“There are intermediate roofs, and there’s even a roof above the upper deck that creates the sense of a canopy and creates a sense of intimacy; then you have the large roof above,” Silverman said. “But when you’re looking up, you’re not looking up 150 feet, you’re looking up 50 or 60 feet.”
Another big change is how close the seats will be to the baselines and home plate, with the Rays taking advantage of the mandated installation of protective netting to reduce the distance between field and fan to what they say will be the closest in the majors. The design also will allow seats in the upper deck — which is split into two sections around the infield — to be closer to the field level.
“We’re creating this intimacy in part because we don’t need to have 40,000 seats,” Silverman said, acknowledging the traditionally low attendance (averaging 17,781 last season) the Rays hope to boost. “So, we’re using the size of the ballpark to our advantage to create a much more intimate environment for all of our fans.”
In addition to the 30,000 fixed seats, the Rays say there will be standing/gathering areas to push capacity to the 33,000-34,000 range. Not counting Tropicana Field’s 25,025 capacity with the upper deck closed, MLB’s current smallest stadium is Cleveland’s Progressive Field at 34,380.
Details aren’t set, but Silverman said there also will be “water features” — including a rays touch tank, like at the Trop, or “a successor” to it.
The glass panels near the roof will provide diffused light that will brighten the interior but not make it warmer. Street-level panels will create what Silverman called “the indoor/outdoor experience,” with some operable to allow for breezes in some seating areas during cooler months.
On the field
The last things to be designed will be details of the field, such as the shape of the outfield and height of the fences, and the clubhouse/workout space underneath the stands.
Absent a technological breakthrough, the Rays will have to stick with an artificial turf field, with dirt basepaths as they have now. Bullpens will be beyond the outfield fence.
With glass beyond the centerfield area, the video boards are positioned in the outfield corners. Team officials are adamant there will be no issues with sunlight glare or shadows due to the stadium orientation, with the batter facing north.
The Rays are banking on booking many other events beyond their 81 games, saying improved acoustics should make the stadium a popular concert venue with capacity up to 50,000, along with hosting festivals and graduations. Though a football field won’t fit and soccer would be tight (so the Tampa Bay Rowdies won’t be moving in), just about any other sport, including pro wrestling and even hockey, could work.
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