Would FEMA cover the cost of repairing Tropicana Field?
Mayor Ken Welch believes they might.
Per the original use agreement, the City of St. Petersburg appears to be on the hook for the repairs needed to make Tropicana Field playable (even though it’s Pinellas County that draws tax revenue from the Rays playing in St. Petersburg).
In its initial assessment of the damage to Tropicana Field, the city report proposes a total repair cost comes just over $55 million (including the ~$6 million initial repairs to protect the site from further damage).
That amount could go up if additional damage is discovered or occurs before the exposed inside is fully waterproofed, and when the estimate for the cost of replacing an acoustical membrane beneath the dome — which the city has requested — is completed.
If St. Petersburgh were to allocate the necessary funds — some of which will be paid by insurance — then Mayor Ken Welch says the Rays would be obligated to play in Tropicana Field through the 2028 season, per the Tampa Bay Times:
“It’s an obligation of the city under the existing agreement (to provide a facility). And to me it certainly would answer the question of where the Rays would play in ‘26 through ‘28, if we have to extend that. I think it’s best for all if the Rays are back home for the remainder of the existing agreement.”
[...]
“We anticipate that the majority of the repair costs incurred by the City will be covered by insurance and FEMA reimbursements, making this approach both beneficial for community spirit and fiscally responsible for our community.”
The interesting new element Mayor Welch brings to the discussion is the assumption that the federal government, through FEMA, would pick up some of the tab.
FEMA’s Public Assistance Program provides supplemental grants to state and local governments, as well as certain types of private non-profits, so that communities can quickly respond to and recover from major disasters that impact Public Facilities. The Program policy guide describes a Public Facility as follows:
Public Facility
An eligible public facility is one that a [state or local] government owns or has legal responsibility for maintaining, including any:Flood control, navigation, irrigation, reclamation, public power, sewage treatment and collection, water supply and distribution, watershed development, or airport facility;
• Non-Federal-aid street, road, or highway;
• Other public building, structure, or system, including those used for educational, recreational, or cultural purposes; or
• Park.
When a facility maintained by a Community Development District is not open to the general public or does not provide a service to the general public, the facility is ineligible.
Tropicana Field is owned by the city and operated by the Rays, making its eligibility under the program a potential gray area — note that “open to the public” doesn’t mean open without cost or without restriction, and one might argue (we would) that area sports are a public service that forms and supports the community identity.
The good news for the Rays is that there is precedent for FEMA awarding funds for sports stadiums.
In 2017 several stadiums in Houston received funds after Hurricane Harvey with Reliant Park, where the NFL’s Houston Texans play, being the most analogous to the Rays’ situation. Additionally, in 2021, FEMA allocated $18.4 Million to repair Roberto Clemente Stadium in Puerto Rico, noting:
“We recognize that sports are a fundamental tool to provide quality of life to our communities. We are pleased to contribute by allocating funds for the improvement of facilities such as this iconic stadium, in support of the sporting spirit of our people. This also contributes to help Puerto Rico host local and international events in different sports disciplines,” said the said the Federal Disaster Recovery Coordinator for Puerto Rico, José G. Baquero.
We’re still seeking clarity on when the city will know whether or not FEMA has approved funding for the Tropicana Field repairs and in what amount.
The city will likely request the full $55 million (plus additional for the acoustical membrane once that assessment is complete), but if the Reliant Park example is followed, FEMA will make a determination of the base level of repairs necessary to return The Trop to its pre-Milton function and to protect it against future disaster-related damage, but will seek to exclude repairs for wear and tear that may have existed before the hurricane. We will update as we learn more about the timeline.
According to the Forbes team valuations, the Rays ran an operating income of $68 million in 2023, the third highest in baseball.
While it’s tough to know whether that number is accurate, there appears to be some kind of a budget surplus in Tampa Bay (although future earnings are likely to be impacted by the TV deal that’s currently being renegotiated). The Rays were surely planning to direct some of that alleged budget surplus towards the new stadium construction, but in general it does suggest that they are a financially healthy organization capable of shouldering contingency costs.
The Rays and MLB have a significant incentive for baseball to continue in Tampa Bay, and the breakdown of costs and responsibilities required by Tropicana Field’s Use Agreement vs the one that makes the most sense between long term partners may not be exactly the same.
Previously: