ST. PETERSBURG — Wengay Newton, a staunch opponent of allowing the Tampa Bay Rays to look around the region for a new stadium site, said he would support such a deal if the boundaries of the Southside Community Redevelopment Area were redrawn to include Tropicana Field’s much-coveted 85 acres.
On Nov. 12, he brought that idea to a City Council vote and lost. Only Steve Kornell joined Newton in a vote to send his proposal to committee. Five other members voted against: Charlie Gerdes, Karl Nurse, Darden Rice, Amy Foster and Jim Kennedy.
Redeveloping the Trop — with or without a stadium — could yield as much as $1 billion in development, city officials have estimated.