Officials in the city of St. Petersburg, Florida, want to make it clear that their city is the current and future home of the Tampa Bay Rays as negotiations continue on details surrounding a proposed new $1.3 billion ballpark that would be ready for the 2028 season opener. The Rays adamantly oppose changing the team name to the St. Petersburg Rays, as some on the city council and in the business community have suggested as a way of raising the national profile of the tourism-dependent city and its nearby Gulf Coast beaches. The council heard Thursday from city officials about other marketing and branding options, including at least one home game a year in which alternate team uniforms would sport the St. Petersburg name, said Doyle Walsh, chief of staff to Mayor Ken Welch. The talks include allowing the city to have input in naming the ballpark, placing prominent St. Petersburg signs inside the park and a marketing plan that would “promote the team, the stadium and the destination jointly,” according to city documents. The alternate uniforms with the St. Petersburg logo would be sold year-round as another way of branding the city, Walsh said. “We get a lot of value having the team in St. Pete," he said. No final decision was made Thursday by the city council, which must ultimately approve the new 30,000-seat ballpark as part of a broader $6.5 billion plan to redevelop an 86-acre (34-hectare) downtown tract that will also include affordable housing, office and retail space, a hotel, a Black history museum and more. The deal also has to be approved by Pinellas County officials. MORE: https://www.wtsp.com/article/sports/mlb/rays/st-petersburg-name-change-stadium-update/67-5f96c534-9adf-4e75-83ac-8a4ac2a7c5ae ►Subscribe: https://on.wtsp.com/youtube ►Website: https://www.wtsp.com/ ►Facebook: https://facebook.com/10TampaBay ►Twitter: https://twitter.com/10TampaBay