TAMPA, Fla. — The Tampa Sports Authority board voted Tuesday to direct local elected officials to prioritize keeping Raymond James Stadium up to NFL standards before funding other sports projects.
A key question driving the debate: if local governments face a funding shortfall, should the city and county prioritize renovating Raymond James Stadium for the Buccaneers or financing a potential new Tampa Bay Rays stadium in Tampa? As of Wednesday, the Buccaneers have not officially submitted a stadium renovation proposal, and no agreement has been finalized to bring the Rays to Tampa.
WATCH: Tampa Sports Authority votes to prioritize Buccaneers funding over Rays if money runs short
Tampa residents near Raymond James Stadium shared their views on how the city should handle the competing priorities.
Andre Whitehead said he believes the Buccaneers remain the bigger draw, but would prefer to see both teams supported.
"I know both organizations are beloved here in Tampa, but for me, I think the Bucs are still the bigger draw. So, if that was the situation, I think that money should most likely probably go to the Bucs," Whitehead said.
He added that sports are central to life in Tampa.
"100%. I may be a little biased, I'm a big sports guy, but 100%. And I would want to keep, or always have both teams here," Whitehead said.
Phillip Nguyen said he would prioritize the Buccaneers, but believes the Rays belong in Tampa.
"Bucs, for sure. Because I'm a big football fan," Nguyen said.
He added that having the Rays in Tampa makes geographic sense.
"I think that'd be a good situation, if both teams are here in the Tampa Bay. I mean, they are the Tampa Bay Rays. I mean, it makes sense to have them live here, right?" Nguyen said.
Nguyen said Tampa's sports identity is tied to its ability to compete with other Florida cities.
"In Florida, there's a lot of sports teams, and I think we compete against each city, like Jacksonville, you know, Miami, Orlando, we try to be the best in Florida," Nguyen said.
He also said losing any team would hurt the city.
"It's gonna hurt us. I mean, for sure. I mean, in Florida, there's a lot of sports teams, and I think we compete, you know, against each city," Nguyen said.
TSA board member Alan Clendenin on Buccaneers priority letter
Tampa City Council Chair and Tampa Sports Authority board member Alan Clendenin pushed back on the idea that the authority should formally prioritize the Buccaneers over other tenants. I spoke to him one-on-one after the meeting.
"I don't look at it this way. I look at it at the Tampa Sports Authority, is the Tampa Sports Authority, not the Bucs Sports Authority," Clendenin said.
Clendenin argued the authority has a responsibility to balance the needs of all the sports and recreation facilities it oversees.
Tampa Sports Authority is the manager of Raymond James Stadium, three city golf courses, the Hillsborough County Tournament Sportsplex and, as of their June 2nd meeting, the University of South Florida football stadium. TSA is the landlord for George Steinbrenner Field and the Benchmark International Arena.
He also defended the Rays deal as a sound public investment.
"This is an investment that's going to have a return on that investment. We're going to — the city of Tampa, the county, the area — is going to make money, it's going to generate jobs, there's going to be revenue coming from this, so we put in $1 we're going to get multiple dollars back," Clendenin said.
Clendenin said it's important to remember that when Raymond James Stadium was originally built for the Buccaneers, taxpayers covered 100% of the cost. Under the current Rays proposal, the organization has offered to pay up to 56% of the new stadium.
"Can you imagine in the city of Tampa and or in Hillsborough County not having Tampa Bay Lightning right now? I mean, I can't even imagine what that would look like, and I think once we're swinging bats in Tampa on the Major League Baseball, people look back and think the same thing," Clendenin said.
On the letter sent by some board members, Clendenin said the motivation was political rather than policy-driven.
"It's not policy, it's politics. You have folks that have some personal agendas that are pushing personal agendas rather than the good of the city of Tampa and Hillsborough County," Clendenin said.
As for what the Buccaneers can expect from any renegotiation of their stadium contract, Clendenin said the team's wish list is not guaranteed.
"You can't always get what you want. We're going to renegotiate. You have a 30-year contract that's up for renewal, they have an opportunity to renew in five-year increments. We are going to renegotiate," Clendenin said.
Board votes to send letter prioritizing Buccaneers
In a vote that followed a contentious debate, the board passed a motion directing staff to draft a letter to Tampa City Council, the Hillsborough County Commission, and other elected officials stating that the TSA's top priority is maintaining Raymond James Stadium to NFL standards.
Board member Tony Prida argued that with limited public funding available, elected officials need to hear directly from the board, not through press coverage, that the Buccaneers renovation must come first.
"There's only so much dollars that we have out there, and we can take care of our current tenants. We all know that this partnership is in the billion dollar range. Before we submit our excess dollars to another entity, I think we need to make sure we take care of the Bucs here first," Prida said.
TSA CEO Eric Hart agreed that communicating it directly to elected officials made sense.
"Last time we were in executive committee session, everybody voiced the fact that we felt our number one obligation was Raymond James Stadium, and to keep it up to NFL standards, and to make sure that we continue a relationship with the Buccaneers. That got communicated through the press to city council and to the county commission, because we never addressed either group directly," Hart said.
Board member Andy Madill said the board has a responsibility to take a public stand.
"There's nobody that spends more time on a committee regarding the finances of sports than us. And because of that, sometimes we have to give recommendations and show leadership and put our neck out. This is a main issue. This is our building," Madill said.
Clendenin voted against the motion, arguing it misrepresents the authority's broader mission and could undermine ongoing negotiations over the Rays stadium deal.
"The financial fiscal responsibility falls amongst the bodies that fund the organization, including the county commission and the Tampa City Council. The Tampa Sports Authority doesn't fund anything — really self-funded from this thing. Those decisions are made by the elected bodies," Clendenin said.
Clendenin also pointed out that the Rays deal has already cleared the county commission and city council on a non-binding memorandum of understanding, and that definitive documents are being negotiated by teams representing the Rays organization, the county, and the city.
"I just don't feel like this is appropriate or needed at this time," Clendenin said.
Board member Joe Waggoner also spoke about the motion.
"There's so much out there that hasn't been resolved or settled, and I think us getting locked into a position actually creates an issue for us if we have to make some changes to comply with what the county and city finally come up with," Waggoner said.
Board member Robinson raised the question of whether the TSA has the authority to decline to issue bonds on behalf of a project, adding the authority has previously bonded Raymond James Stadium, Benchmark Arena, parking structures at Benchmark, and Steinbrenner Field. Hart confirmed the board does have that authority.
Robinson said that financial role gives the board standing to weigh in.
"We deal with financing and dealing with helping people get facilities built," Robinson said.
The motion passed with one dissenting vote. Hart said staff would draft the letter, circulate it to board members by email for review, and the board chair would sign the final version on behalf of the board.
TSA to operate USF's new stadium
The board also approved a term sheet for the Tampa Sports Authority to manage USF's new on-campus football stadium, which seats approximately 35,000. The initial agreement covers a 4-year term with two potential 3-year extensions.
Under the agreement, the TSA would receive no revenue from USF football games but would earn 15% of revenue from events already confirmed in the building and 20% from events the authority books independently. All TSA operating costs would be covered by USF, meaning the authority carries no financial exposure under the deal.
Hart said the arrangement is designed to benefit both organizations.
"We're looking to cover costs, offset our costs at all of our other operations, which is what we'll do. We'll lower our costs at the golf course, we'll lower our costs here, we lower our costs at the sportsplex, because all of our wages will now get spread out," Hart said.
Hart said the TSA would provide key personnel, including a general manager or director stationed at the facility full time. A new TSA North office hub is planned at the nearby MOSI redevelopment site to support both the USF stadium and the MOSI Field House operations.
Hart said the two buildings need to work together rather than compete.
"These buildings need to work in tandem with each other, instead of competing against each other," Hart said.
USF would retain its existing food and beverage contract with Levy, its liquor license, and University Police services. The TSA would handle event coordination and booking, parking operations, security, law enforcement coordination, and facility management in a primarily supervisory role over the university's existing contractors.
Hart said the TSA would also coordinate with the Florida Department of Transportation, Hillsborough County, Temple Terrace, and the City of Tampa on traffic management and parking operations.
Hart said the first-year revenue projection is modest but expected to grow.
"In the first year, I think we generate, I don't know, maybe a quarter," Hart said.
He added that the long-term opportunity extends beyond the stadium itself.
"Think about MOSI and the connection to the university and the youth sport development that now we potentially have the sports plex and those feeding — there are other revenue opportunities that might not exactly be added, but it's going to help develop all of it as more of a combined package," Hart said.
Clendenin called the agreement a validation of the authority's expertise and an example of efficient government.
"This is a great opportunity for efficiency and government services. It's economy of scale. You already have such better expertise, you can cross utilize it across our different platforms and different facilities. I think this is a win, win, win," Clendenin said.
Board Chair Dave Mechanik said the partnership grew out of conversations he began with USF's Mike Griffin roughly a year ago and intensified once Rob Higgins officially joined USF.
"About a year or so ago, I began having serious conversations with USF's Mike Griffin on partnerships with the county, TSA, and USF that make sense and are beneficial to all parties, and on top of that list was the TSA operating the USF stadium," Mechanik said.
Mechanik said the county is scheduled to approve funding for the MOSI Field House at its June 17 meeting, and that the entire corridor is expected to be transformed within two to three years.
"When you consider the fact that TSA is going to have a significant presence at MOSI, and the relationship Eric built with Rob by partnering on so many world-class events at Raymond James, it's really easy to see the synergies that will exist between TSA and USF," Mechanik said.
The full management agreement is expected to come before the board at its August 2 meeting. The motion passed unanimously.
Florida property tax reform could affect sports funding
The board received a legislative update from lobbyist Ron Pierce on a property tax reform measure that passed both chambers of the Florida Legislature during a special session and now heads to the November ballot as a constitutional amendment requiring 60% voter approval.
Pierce said the measure would raise the homestead property tax exemption from $50,000 to $150,000 beginning January 1, 2027, and to $250,000 by January 2028. New Florida residents after January 1, 2027, would not qualify for the full $250,000 exemption until they have lived in the state for 5 years, though they would still qualify for the existing $50,000 exemption and Save Our Homes protections.
The measure also caps future assessment increases on business properties at 5%, down from the current 10% cap, and holds education and constitutional officers harmless from any resulting revenue reductions.
Pierce said the potential impact on the TSA and its government partners is still being assessed.
"I'm not sure what the impact could be on the authority, but we'll obviously provide updates and keep Eric and the team updated as this moves along," Pierce said.
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