With the final meeting of the St. Petersburg City Council before November elections, the all-powerful board in control of the Rays lease for Tropicana Field offered a plan to allow a new stadium search.
Councilman Jim Kennedy, one of the five dissenting votes for the previous Rays stadium proposal, offered a plan to the Council that passed with a 5-3 vote this afternoon.
Under this agreement, the team would pay $4M to the city for every year remaining on its stadium-use contract that runs through 2027. If they move outside St. Petersburg but remain in Pinellas County, the annual compensation amount would drop to $2.