Tampa Bay Rays Stadium Search: Site on Gandy Boulevard Emerges

ST. PETERSURG, FL — It’s no secret that the Tampa Bay Rays desperately want to leave Tropicana Field. That doesn’t, however, mean they’re sold on the idea of leaving St. Petersburg entirely.

A new site has emerged in the Rays’ search for a home that would keep the team in St. Pete while potentially drawing a great deal of traffic from both Pinellas and Hillsborough counties. The Snug Harbor site on Gandy Boulevard offers 39 acres of waterfront land for a stadium that could also serve boat traffic.

The site, once a mobile home park, has gained much attention in recent days as a viable option that would keep the Rays in town while appealing to fans in the process.

“This is certainly one of many sites that we’re taking a serious look at,” Melanie Lenz, who is leading the Rays’ stadium search, told the Tampa Bay Times.

Lenz didn’t elaborate on other sites that are being seriously considered by the team. A number of locations in both Pinellas and Hillsborough counties have been floated since the team won its bid to break out of its Tropicana Field contract.

The Tampa Bay Rays were given a green light to search for a new stadium back in January. The team had been searching for a way out of its contract at Tropicana Field for years as its attendance figures slumped. The city agreed to allow the team to begin looking for a new stadium site with the caveat that it cannot leave the Trop before 2018.

The city of St. Petersburg is still holding out hope an agreement can be made to keep the team at Tropicana Field. Even so, it is taking steps to plan for the 85-acre site’s future should the Rays really leave.

To find out more about the Snug Harbor site, check out the Tampa Bay Times’ story.

Where do you think the Rays should go? Tell us by commenting below!