City council approves cleanup, temporary changes to Tropicana Field after Hurricane Milton damage

Hurricane Milton brought extensive damage to much of the East Coast recently. It was one of the most devastating hurricanes in US history. And it’ll likely take some parts of the country a number of years to recover. In Tampa Bay, the roof of Tropicana Field–home of the Tampa Bay Rays, was completely destroyed. For the start of the 2025 season, the Rays are still currently looking for a home. But an important step has been accomplished in repairing Tropicana Field.

The St. Petersburg city council approved roughly $6.5 million in public funding for the work to be done to the Rays stadium, according to a report from David Rumsey of Front Office Sports. The building sustained major damage, including its entire roof collapsing–during Hurricane Milton.

A temporary draining system will also be created, and the stadium’s electrical system, concessions, and other exposed areas will be waterproofed, according to the Tampa Bay Times. The process is supposed to protect the facility against future storms, could last eight weeks.

The Tampa Bay Rays are still expected to open the 2025 season in late March at a temporary venue–with the franchise looking at Tampa area options like their spring training center in Port Charlotte, Florida. One of the other options they are considering is the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando, Florida.

Tropicana Field to be replaced with $1.3 billion stadium

“The storm was significant but thankfully, this was not the worst-case scenario,” Florida governor Ron DeSantis explained.

Tropicana Field opened in 1990 and initially cost $138 million. The stadium will be replaced in 2028 with a $1.3 billion ballpark.

“The coolest part is how close the fans will be to the field and how close a connection they’ll feel to the game that’s being played on the field,” Rays president Matt Silverman said earlier this year, per MLB.com. “In the past, ballparks were designed before [protective] nets were required, so there was a distance that you needed from the field for safety. And when you have a larger capacity, it makes it much more difficult to put the seats close to the field because the geometry doesn’t work.

“Knowing where we are today, we’re able to minimize foul territory and bring all of the seats much closer to the field of play, creating an energy and intimacy that doesn’t exist in baseball. … This will be, we think, the most intimate ballpark in baseball.”

On3’s Brian Jones also contributed to this article.