Pinellas IDs 10 sites for Rays’ new stadium

Officials on Tuesday released 10 potential sites for a new major league baseball stadium.

County Administrator Mark Woodard briefed Pinellas County commissioners at a 2 p.m. meeting.

The Tampa Bay Rays have played at Tropicana Field since their expansion debut in 1998.

The proposed sites include a 135-acre location on Gandy Boulevard North along with a pair of 20-acre sites — the former Sunshine Speedway site in Pinellas Park and a location at the corner of U.S. 19 North and Bellair Road.

The team’s current location on Tropicana Drive also was listed among the 10 choices.

County officials hope to keep the team on the Pinellas side of the bay.

The other proposed locations are:

• The southwest corner of 118th Avenue North and 49th Street in Pinellas Park
• The 3500 block of 126th Avenue
• The 13000 block of Stonybrook Drive
• The southwest corner of U.S. 19 North and Belleair Road
• The 19000 block of U.S. 19 North
• Forest Lake Boulevard South and Race Track Road (Oldsmar)

Officials broke down the 10 proposed locations by businesses and employees in the area, median income and the drive time to each site.

See the report at http://bit.ly/29SeHEr

This story was originally published July 19, 2016 at 11:38 PM with the headline "Pinellas IDs 10 sites for Rays’ new stadium."