The Tampa Bay Rays and local officials announced a tentative $2.3 billion agreement on Thursday for a new ballpark funded by public and private money.
The nonbinding memorandum of understanding among the Rays, Hillsborough County and the city of Tampa outlines the costs of a stadium, which would incl
ude $967 million of tax dollars. Elected officials for the city and county are expected to vote on the deal at separate meetings next week.
“The Rays respectfully but resolutely encourage Hillsborough County and the City of Tampa to approve the MOU and make possible a Forever Home for our co
mmunity’s Tampa Bay Rays, breathe new life into the Dale Mabry Campus of Hillsborough College, and create a new privately financed neighborhood that will be an in
viting and inclusive destination to work, live, learn, and play,” Rays CEO Ken Babby said in a statement.
The Rays ownership reached an agreement earlier this year with Hillsborough College to build the stadium and mixed-use entertainment district on the college campus and to renovate some of the college’s buildings. Th
e property is located next to the New York Yankees’ spring training facility and across a highway from Raymond James Stadium, home of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The Rays have said they hope to have the new stadium built within three years.
Since the team took the field in 1998, the Rays have played at Tropicana Field in St. Pet
ersburg, except for moving home games to the Yankees’ Steinbrenner Field in 2025 following hurricane damage at the Trop. The Rays lease runs through at least the 2028 seaso
n. The team returned to the Trop last month for the start of this season.
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A proposed $1.3 billion redevelopment deal for a new ballpark adjacent to the Trop fell through last year, raising new questions about the future of the team, whic
h was bought last September by Patrick Zalupski’s ownership group.
Roof losses didn’t slow despite a 20 percent decline in overall claims volume in 2025.
Data showed that the average U.S. residential replacement costs jumped 33% and repair costs climbed 25% in 2025, compared to the prior four-year average.
Average residential roof replacement costs reached $17,631 in 2025, with repair costs averaging $4,699.
Residential roof replacement cost value (RCV) declined to $23 billion in 2025, compared to an averag
e of $24.4 billion from 2021 to 2024, the study found. The 2025 decline was driven by a limited U.S. landfall hurricane season, though RCV remained elevated.
In Verisk Risk Analyzer-designated hail states, 57% of residential properties have roofs nine yea
rs old or newer, compared with 38% in non-hail states, highlighting faster replacement cycles alongside significant local volatility.
