St. Pete investor offers $260 million to buy 86-acre Tropicana Field site
/Tropicana Field pictured after hurricane milton’s high winds shredded Tropicana Field's roof and caused over $55 million in damage | st. pete rising
Prominent Tampa Bay investor Thompson Whitney Blake is offering the City of St. Petersburg $260 million in an all-cash deal to buy the Gas Plant District following the Tampa Bay Rays' abrupt announcement of abandoning the stadium agreement.
"We, along with all of the other residents in town, have listened to a decade of dialogues, debates, pundits, and prognosticators, lawyers, and talking heads... In our opinion, this project needs someone to do what my mom has always said, 'put your money where your mouth is.' So, here we go," Blake, CEO of private equity firm Blake Investment Partners, wrote in a letter to Mayor Ken Welch and the St. Petersburg City Council.
The offer letter was sent on Thursday, March 13th, shortly after the Tampa Bay Rays announced on social media that they were withdrawing from the $1.37 billion deal to build a new stadium in downtown St. Petersburg. The team cited unforeseen challenges from back-to-back hurricanes and prolonged negotiations as reasons for their decision.
The city has dedicated funding towards the needed repairs for tropicana field | st. pete rising
The Rays' development partner, Hines, will also no longer move forward with the planned transformation of the proposed mixed-use district.
Under Blake Investment Group’s proposed purchase agreement, the firm would pay the city $60 million to repair Tropicana Field, which sustained significant damage from Hurricane Milton. An additional $200 million would be paid when the Rays’ lease expires in two years.
The city’s latest appraisal values the 86-acre site at $331 million, or approximately $3.85 million per acre.
Blake stated that he is prepared to secure permits for $500 million in vertical construction and would begin work as soon as the Rays' lease ends in 2027. The details of this construction was not specified in the offer.
"The owner(s) of this MLB team cannot be faulted for making wise decisions based on financial returns. I know and like the ownership group ... that said, our investment strategy presumes that the MLB stays for their lease term, and then vacates," Blake wrote, emphasizing that he is not interested in purchasing the baseball team.
While the letter does not outline the full vision for the reimagined Gas Plant District, it does mention plans to bring a "household name, five-star hotel to one of the city blocks."
An conceptual site plan for the Gas Plant District | Blake investment partners
The proposal also allows the city to retain 15 acres, including Booker Creek, for a new park and two acres for a new Woodson African American Museum.
Additionally, Pinellas County could enter a 99-year lease agreement for a 15-acre convention center site and share parking with Tropicana Field. The county would also have the right to issue new bonds to finance the convention center’s construction.
Blake Investment Group would cover infrastructure costs for the revitalized Gas Plant District, including power and roadwork to reconnect the street grid.
The group highlighted its readiness to undertake the project, noting its track record of completing 20 developments across the region and its current leadership in the redevelopment of the Jim & Heather Gills YMCA.
It’s not known whether the City of St. Petersburg will review the unsolicited offer.
If the city decides to move forward with the unsolicited offer, it would initiate a process allowing other developers and interested parties to submit competing proposals.
