For years, Major League Baseball (MLB)âs Tampa Bay Rays have drawn sparse crowds. Many in the Bay area have questioned the local support for the team and the Rays as an organization have apparently concluded that the team can not survive in its current St. Petersburg home at Tropicana Field.
The non-profit group Tampa Bay Rays 2020 (TBR2020), however, is working quickly to show the Rays that things will be different if the team moves to Tampa, by organizing community and business support for the Raysâ possible future move to Ybor City.
TBR2020 has enlisted the help of the North Tampa Bay (formerly Wesley Chapel) Chamber (NTBC), which was the first Chamber of Commerce to pledge its support.
âIt was very strategic on their part,â says NTBC CEO Hope Allen. âThey sought us out, they came to us, they knew we were a vital key to the whole corridor. A chamber like ours that represents Pasco County can help them.â
Having the NTBC sign on was just the beginning for TBR2020.
âJust in the last couple of weeks here, weâve had four chambers sign on formally to support this initiative,â said Mike Griffin, senior managing director at Savills Studley Occupier Services and the immediate past chair of the Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors. âThe exciting thing about that was the first one that got behind us was the North Tampa/Wesley Chapel group. The excitement weâre seeing outside of downtown and outside of the city is really, really important. Itâs good getting folks that normally arenât at the table for major regional issues.â
Founded by Chuck Sykes, CEO of Sykes Enterprises, and Ron Christaldi, a partner at the law firm of Shumaker, Loop and Kendrick, the TBR2020 group held a standing room-only press conference last month at the Tampa Baseball Museum in historic Ybor City to announce its plans. Also last month, Jason Woody, the President/CEO of the Lions Eye Institute for Transplant & Research, Inc, and a member of the Advisory Board of Tampa Bay Rays 2020, was the featured speaker at the NTBCâs April 3 Business Breakfast.
The goal of TBR2020 is to help keep the Rays in the Bay area, by raising awareness and rounding up local community and businesses willing to pledge their support to the teamâs proposed move to Ybor City, where the selected 14-acre stadium site is expected to breathe new life into that area, as well as into what is becoming a lifeless baseball franchise.
TBR2020 also announced the Rays 100, a select group of businesses and corporations willing to pledge financial support in the form of corporate boxes and sponsorships.
âThis has opened up a dialogue,â Griffin said. âThe biggest questions we hear now are whatâs next and how can we help. The ultimate goal is to have a very diverse and vast coalition of supporters that ultimately leads to a conversation about sponsorships and tickets. Itâs tough to get there, though, if we donât know and havenât identified our supporters.â
Rumors have swirled for years about the Rays possibly moving to a city that might offer more support. Allen is one of those who thinks that such a move would be devastating to the Tampa Bay area.
âMy opinion is we need to fight hard to keep them here in the region,â Allen said. âMajor league sports franchises have a huge economic impact on a region. Very significant. You donât want to lose that.â
One issue that TBR2020 wonât be addressing, just yet anyway, is the thorniest â how to pay for a new stadium. The price of a new stadium could range anywhere from $600-800 million, though it is hard to zero in on a figure without a design. The Rays owners have pledged $150 million to the project.
âRight now, we are all about building engagement, awareness and excitement,â Griffin said. âIf we couldnât fill the Rays 100, if we couldnât get the local organizations to endorse, it would be a totally different conversation with the county and the team. The reality is, weâve been able to demonstrate it is the complete opposite.â
Those willing to participate can sign the online petition at TampaBayRays2020.com.Â