Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

Joe HendersonSeptember 13, 2018

It is nearly mid-September and the Tampa Bay Rays are playing meaningful baseball games. They still have an outside shot of making the playoffs. Being the wise baseball sage that I am, I certainly saw this success coming after the club ran off all its high-priced talent in an offseason purge that at the time […]

Joe HendersonJuly 12, 2018

Perhaps no politician in Hillsborough County has been more identified with the effort to build a stadium for the Tampa Bay Rays than Ken Hagan. The veteran County Commissioner was key in trying to convince the Rays that Ybor City was the right place to put a stadium. What he does behind the scenes could […]

Peter SchorschJuly 11, 2018

Do the Tampa Bay Rays know what league they’re playing in? I’m not talking about on-the-field, where they play in the MLB against the Yankees and the Red Sox. I’m talking about off-the-field, where the team is hoping to convince a cash-strapped community to spend hundreds of millions of dollars to build it a new […]

Joe HendersonJuly 10, 2018

I’ll admit something right up front. I had to suppress a gasp Tuesday afternoon when the Tampa Bay Rays unveiled the sticker price for the baseball stadium they propose in Ybor City and hope to play in by 2023. $892 million! That’s about $200 million more than I expected, but I guess it’s roughly in […]

Joe HendersonJuly 9, 2018

The Tampa Bay Rays know how to put on a show, and I’m positive there will be no shortage of “oohs” and “aahs” Tuesday when they roll out the design and, importantly, a cost projection for what they hope is a new stadium in Ybor City. Owner Stuart Sternberg has dropped enticing hints about the stadium […]

Peter SchorschJuly 6, 2018

Conservative group Americans for Prosperity-Florida has long criticized taxpayer-funded sports stadiums, and the Tampa Bay Rays’ new ballpark is no exception. A recent report found that the preferred site for the new stadium is in a tract of land that was recently designated as an “economic opportunity zone,” making it eligible for federal tax breaks. […]

Kate BradshawJune 15, 2018

The last time anyone asked, Tampanians overwhelmingly said they approve of the job Bob Buckhorn has done as Mayor of Tampa. Back in November, some three-quarters of 350 Tampa residents surveyed said they approve of his performance, and most said the city is headed in the right direction — that was before Raybor was a thing. In […]

Scott PowersApril 18, 2018

In a Democratic gubernatorial debate Wednesday that illuminated only a handful of policy differences while all four candidates sought to define their brand themes, former U.S. Rep. Gwen Graham found herself often playing defense, repeatedly disputing remarks from Winter Park businessman Chris King and Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum. At one point Graham, the presumed co-front […]

Phil AmmannMarch 21, 2018

Americans for Prosperity-Florida will be running a new digital ad in the Tampa Bay region warning against using public money to build a new Rays baseball stadium — either in St. Petersburg or Ybor City. Unveiled Wednesday, the 30-second animated ad, produced by the activist group founded by the billionaire conservative brothers Charles and David […]

Guest AuthorMarch 7, 2018

The Tampa Bay Rays want a new stadium to replace 28-year-old Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg. But like many professional sports teams these days, they aren’t going to a group of investors or running to the bank to finance the multimillion-dollar project. Instead, they are going to the government to see how much money they can […]

Tag: Tampa Bay Rays
Image via AP.

Joe Henderson: Tampa Bay Rays are winning, fun. Will it matter?

Joe Henderson: Ken Hagan’s likely pitch for Rays stadium? It’s an investment

Rays’ stadium dream reveal a reminder that team’s politics are still minor-league

Joe Henderson: Cost of Rays new stadium: $892 million! Yikes

Joe Henderson: Rays ready to unveil stadium design, but at what cost?

Americans for Prosperity blasts Bob Buckhorn over Tampa Bay Rays deal

#2 on list of Tampa Bay’s Most Powerful Politicians — Bob Buckhorn

Democratic debate puts Gwen Graham on defense

Americans for Prosperity warns ‘taxpayers lose’ with Tampa Bay stadium

Demetrius Minor: Sports teams are holding communities hostage over our tax dollars