Tampa Bay Rays, Hillsborough College get go-ahead to start negotiations

Hillsborough College’s District Board of Trustees voted unanimously Tuesday to take the first step of what’s likely to be a lengthy process to transform its Dale Mabry campus into the site of a new ballpark for the Tampa Bay Rays.

The trustees agreed to a non-binding memorandum of understanding at an afternoon meeting that will allow college officials to negotiate with the team on a plan that will transform about 113 acres of the campus. The memorandum calls for the college to remain active, though on a smaller portion of the land, and for the Rays to both build a stadium and a mixed-use development on the property.

The college is located just across from Raymond James Stadium on Dale Mabry Highway with boundaries at Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, Lois Avenue and Tampa Bay Boulevard.

The standalone portion of the college, which is named the College District in the memorandum, will be built along the southwest portion of the property facing Lois Avenue.

The land itself would continue to belong to the college with the Rays leasing it. But, the memorandum says, if the team were to use public money to build the ballpark — which is highly likely — the stadium would be conveyed to the county.

Ken Atwater, Hillsborough College’s president, says in a statement that “reimagining the Dale Mabry campus within a dynamic, mixed-use district, we are enhancing the educational experience while strengthening our role as an economic and civic anchor for the community.

“This partnership represents a transformational opportunity for Hillsborough College and, most importantly, for the student experience. A project of this scale and vision creates new pathways for learning, workforce development, internships and career-connected education that directly benefit our students, faculty and staff.”

It’s important to note that while the agreement may be seen as progress toward finally getting a stadium built for the team, this agreement is just the beginning of a long and complicated discussion. And if history is any judge, any talk about progress is just that, talk.

The Rays twice before announced stadium deals only to see them fall apart. The most recent case was last year when, after securing funding from Pinellas County and St. Petersburg, the team backed out of an agreement to build a ballpark near its current home in Tropicana Field.

One key difference this time is the ownership. The Rays were bought in September and the new owners have been hyper-focused on getting a stadium built and open by April 2029.

Ken Babby, the team’s CEO, told the trustees Tuesday that he’s encouraged by the conversations and envisions a “partnership between a rejuvenated Hillsborough College, the broader community, the county, the state and the region, and, of course, the Tampa Bay Rays.”

Says Babby: “Today is just a step, a milestone along the process of bringing this potential 130-acre development here to the Hillsborough college campus.”

The memorandum gives college officials 180 days to negotiate a binding agreement and requires that it be resubmitted to the trustees for a final vote. Even then, city, county, state and water district approvals will be required.

Then there is the issue of money. No dollar amount was discussed, but it is highly likely that the team will have to go to the city and county to get help with funding for the new stadium.

“We need a great public-private partnership,” Babby said on the Hunks Talking Junk podcast released last week.

“We're going to do our part. We're going to write a big check. We already wrote a big one to buy the team. We're going to write another one to build a ballpark. But we need a great public-private partnership where the community, whether it be the county or the city or both, the state, all come together to build something really special here for Tampa Bay.”

Babby told the trustees Tuesday that the project would create 12,000 new jobs and $34 billion in economic impact.