Tropicana Field needs more than a new roof. A peek inside before vote

ST. PETERSBURG — Workers had to punch holes in never-before-used drains underneath the baseball diamond so that when it rains, the water inside Tropicana Field has somewhere to go.

What Hurricane Milton did to the Trop looks even more apocalyptic from the inside than it does from outside. Only a skeleton of the roof remains. Remediation specialists have pulled plastic over field lights, tied tarps over seats, lined up sandbags and sealed off openings to prevent further damage.

Despite waterproofing, water still makes it inside. And an odor, as noted in assessment reports, lingers.

For the first time in six months, St. Petersburg city officials invited the news media on a tour of the Trop the day before the City Council considers approving $22.5 million to replace the roof. Pointing to timelines created by contractors, city officials believe the roof and other repairs will be done by opening day 2026 — even counting on shipping and weather delays.

“We should have it done,” said City Architect Raul Quintana.

The council is expected to approve the repairs. Under its contract with the Rays, which has been in place since 1995, the city as the Rays’ landlord must “diligently pursue” repairs to make the Trop playable again.

The Rays are locked into playing at the Trop through at least 2028. They are spending this season at the New York Yankees’ spring training facility, Steinbrenner Field in Tampa.

Council members were hesitant to repair the Trop, as it was scheduled to be demolished as part of a deal with the Tampa Bay Rays to build a new $1.3 billion stadium, but the team officially backed out of that deal Monday. The Rays originally preferred a settlement instead of repairs, but the city instead is seeking reimbursement from insurance and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The Rays now want repairs done in time for next year’s opening day.

If approved, the city would place an order for the roof. The material is fabricated in Germany, shipped to China for assembly and would be flown to St. Petersburg. The city would put up support netting in June and start receiving shipments in August. The roof is scheduled to be completed by December.

Quintana said the new fabric is designed to current building code and can handle stronger winds than the old one.

The roof replacement includes $100,000 set aside for tariffs imposed on imports. It doesn’t include an acoustical layer for the roof, which was highlighted by Major League Baseball as important.

Beth Herendeen, the city’s special projects manager who has led the planning effort, said the city’s intention is to install a new audio system that doesn’t need an acoustical liner. It would make sound “brighter,” and Herendeen said the league was OK with that.

She said the league has not provided the city with a list of what must be repaired. The city, however, has an evolving list of what needs to be addressed and it is nearly completed.

“With each rain, we learn a little more,” Herendeen said.

Replacing the roof is the first big step. The council is expected vote at least four more times on Trop repairs to pay for metal panels, sports lighting, audio visual equipment and drywall, and flooring and carpets. Herendeen said the next vote would be to approve metal panels in May, followed by the other repairs in June, July and August. The Rays’ corporate offices, which had a home in the Trop but not in the new stadium that was planned, are not being repaired.

“They’re not included at this point because we’re just trying to get ready for baseball,” she said.

Those costs are still being totaled, but the complete price to repair the Trop was estimated to be $56 million last November.

Not everything needs replacement. The air conditioning still works and so does the plumbing.