St. Pete City Council voted unanimously Thursday to formally terminate a failed Tampa Bay Rays ballpark deal. It comes at a precarious time for the team, as talks surrounding a potential sale intensify and momentum builds for the Rays to possibly move across the bay, for good. Months before the team's home ballpark, Tropicana Field, was heavily damaged by Hurricane Milton, the city of St. Petersburg and Pinellas County approved a new $1.3 billion ballpark in an adjacent location that would open in the 2028 season, part of a much larger downtown revitalization project. After back-and-forth discussions and uncertainty, the team announced in March 2025 that they would not be moving forward with an on-the-table deal for a new stadium and surrounding redevelopment in St. Petersburg. Thursday's vote terminates an agreement between the city, the Rays and the development partner, Hines, ultimately dissolving plans tied to the project. Council also approved license agreements that give the team exclusive use of four parcels of city-owned land in the area for parking, storage, operation of an exterior marquee and certain special events. The vote gives control of redevelopment back to the city for the Gas Plant District, which consists of 86 acres, including the land Tropicana Field sits on. MORE: https://www.wtsp.com/article/sports/mlb/rays/rays-stadium-deal-st-petersburg-team-sale-tropicana-field/67-61164de3-b3d2-4244-bf9e-d02461dff7a3