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Could Lee County be home to three professional baseball teams for spring training?
“If bed taxes keep rising, yes we can,” says Tamara Pigott, executive director of the Lee County Visitor & Convention Bureau, speaking to the Real Estate Investment Society in Fort Myers recently.
When Lee County used bed-tax collections to fund the new spring training stadium for the Boston Red Sox, the team left the City of Palms Park empty in downtown Fort Myers. That older stadium could be renovated to suit the Washington Nationals, and team officials are now talking to Lee County government about the possibility of moving from Viera.
Besides the Red Sox, the Minnesota Twins also hold spring training in Fort Myers at Hammond Stadium. Pigott says the Twins are seeking upgrades to that stadium and negotiations are ongoing.
One way the county could pay for upgrades to the City of Palms Park is to increase the bed tax, though that would require the state Legislature and county commissioners to act. Don't expect swift action, she counseled.
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