TAMPA — In what Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn likened to a first date, local elected and business leaders held their first sit-down talk with the Rays this morning, a possible precursor to the team moving across Tampa Bay.
The two-hour meeting, at a Rays merchandise store in downtown Tampa, centered on the process selection document released by the team Thursday detailing how it will evaluate stadium sites in Pinellas and Hillsborough counties.
During the talks, Rays officials unveiled their vision for a new stadium — a smaller capacity, more intimate “next-generation” ballpark with “flexible seating” and different gathering points — without talking about specific sites or how much a new ballpark will cost.