October 1st Board Meeting

Chair Jeff Lyash called the meeting to order at 5:00 p.m., at the EpiCenter, 13805 58

 

th Streetpage 2 page 3

• Tropicana Opportunities - will review the value of the site without the stadium, the

economic impact of baseball at the site, the feasibility of renovating the Trop - what

is the cost and what would you get, what would it take for the Rays to break their

lease, etc. We may need a budget for a legal opinion. Board Member Raymund

suggested the subcommittee also look at the opportunity to redeploy the Tropicana site

for something other than baseball, if the acreage is returned to the tax rolls and

successfully developed what would the financial implication be particularly with respect

to the community’s ability to participate financially.

• Potential Sites - will define with assistance from the Rays and Major League Baseball,

what the site size should be, characteristics that make a good site, proximity to

highways, proximity to access, DRIs, etc.

• Design Development - Board Member Bomstein has agreed to Chair, would review

the last ten stadiums built in American (what do the stadiums look like, what did they

cost, design, access, energy efficiency, etc.) and perhaps look at some non baseball

stadiums.

• Finance - would gather data in the initial stages, look at bonding, taxes, credits,

grants, private contribution by the team, etc.

• Government Information - would attempt to determine where government (City,

County, State, Federal) stands on this over time.

Over time, we may collapse some of these subcommittees, but they will need to communicate with

one another to eliminate duplication. Mr. Kalt indicated the Rays have information regarding each

of the areas described above with the exception of government information. Board Member Sher

stated that by October 17 our goal is to have chairs for all the six subcommittees and have them

think about refining their tasks and to start meeting. Board Member Sher anticipates that all Board

Members will attend various subcommittee meetings and that non voting participants will also be

involved in this process.

Chair Lyash suggested the Board prepare an estimated budget, a list of potential resources and

when needed so we can get an order of magnitude and identify funding sources, i.e., County, City,

private funding, corporations, other sources or perhaps a combination of all sources.

The Board inquired if elected officials can participate in the subcommittee process. Mr. Harris

responded they may have limitations separately serving on some of these subcommittees, I don’t

think they can serve in a voting capacity. Mr. Harris to review this further and report back to the

Board. Chair Lyash indicated he would provide the members with copies of any reports of similar

bodies working on stadiums and the Price Waterhouse Report on the Waterfront Stadium.

During the roundtable discussion, Chair Lyash stated it’s important that at our next meeting we

start to get educated and proposed that the Rays address the Board on October 17 and give us an

A Baseball Community (ABC) Meeting

October 1, 2008 Minutes,

page 4

overview of the present state of the Franchise, how we got where we are and what that looks like

going forward with relevant statistics and analysis they’ve already done. The Rays would present

information they think is relevant, answer specific questions we might have and we can identify

information to request from the Rays which they can provide at a later date.

Chair Lyash received input and identified the following series of discussion/presentation topics

to be presented by outside experts:

basics of stadium design/construction

sports economics

parking and transportation considerations

urban and public space planning issues

general project financing information

Mr. Kalt suggested the Rays can provide information on the above topics - report on market

conditions, how we compare, pros and cons, current situation at the Trop, attendance compared

to other teams. What’s important is where we are relative to the other teams, ballpark economics

and what it means to team stability, etc. Mr. Mussett stated the City has extensive files of

information and stated that the suggested information gathering referred to by various board

members would be very helpful, just as it was for the City during the Vision 2020 and LDR

preparation and adoption processes. He stated the regional market has been fragmented since 1914

and this is an obstacle which we will have to overcome. Mr. Meidel stated that regarding

government information, we cannot pole elected officials but we can provide information on TIF,

bed tax, what pots of money can be used, how they are created, etc.

Board Member Mitchell reminded the various Chairs that as they appoint their respective members

to include individuals with opposing views. Chair Lyash to agenda a discussion concerning conflict

of interest at the next meeting.

There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 6:45 p.m.

abc baseball10-01-08.wpd

 

North, Largo, FL with the following Board Members present:

Steve Raymund, Chairman of the Board, Tech Data

Craig Sher, President and CEO, The Sembler Company, Chair, Stadium Options CIG

Gregory Johnson, President, Pinellas County Urban League

Alan Bomstein, President, Creative Contractors

Judy Mitchell, President, Peter Brown Construction

Russ Kimball, Executive Vice President and General Manager, Sheraton Sand Key Resort

Barbara Heck, President, CONA (Council of Neighborhood Associations) and Chair, Fan Support

and Involvement CIG

Ricardo “Rick” Davis, President, Bay Area Medical Supplies, Inc.

Also Present: Richard George, President, Junior Achievement of West Florida, Co-Chair, Fan

Support and Involvement CIG

Joe Bourdow, President, Valpak Direct Marketing Systems, Inc., Co-Chair,

Corporate Support CIG

Richard Mussett, City Development Senior Administrator, City of St. Petersburg

Michael Kalt, Senior Vice President of Development, Tamp Bay Rays

Michael Meidel, Director of Economic Development, Pinellas County

Stuart Rogel, President and CEO, Tampa Bay Partnership

Nancy Loeher, Community Relations Manager, Progress Energy Florida

Charley Harris, Legal Counsel

Eva Andujar, City Clerk, City of St. Petersburg

Absent: Robert Stewart, Pinellas County Commissioner, and Chair, Tourist Development

Council

Chuck Sykes, President & CEO, Sykes Corporation, Chair, Corporate Support CIG

Tony Satterfield, General Manager, Alden Beach Resort, Co-Chair, Stadium

Options CIG

Board Member Mitchell moved with the second of Board Member Johnson that the September 15,

2008 minutes be approved as submitted. Unanimous approval by acclamation.

Chair Lyash stated no changes were made to the By-Laws which were considered adopted as

drafted. Board Member Bomstein reviewed the revised Ground Rules which incorporate input

provided by the Committee at the September 15 meeting. The Ground Rules were adopted as

amended.

In connection with CIG Reports, Board Member Heck provided an update on the Fan Support and

Involvement CIG. She stated the CIG intends to reach out to bring groups together to talk about

increasing fan support and facilitating public involvement through fan workshops on the various

A Baseball Community (ABC) Meeting

October 1, 2008 Minutes,

issues identified. The first meeting is scheduled to be held on November 5, at USF Tampa, from

5-7 p.m. Our intention is to have the fans tell us how to increase fan involvement in 3, 5 and 10

years. Additional information will be on the website and there will be additional meetings and

venues for fan input around the Bay area. Board Member Heck indicated she would provide an

outline to the Board, at the next meeting, concerning the structure of the meeting, how they

envision capturing the results, etc. Board Member Heck and CIG Co-Chair Richard George met

separately with Mr. Kalt to discuss the types of activities they are marketing to the local fan base

and Mr. Kalt has made their Marketing Department available to us. We have reviewed most of

the original applications and have identified stakeholders we want to ensure are included.

Corporate Support CIG Co-Chair Bourdow reported an initial meeting has been scheduled to be

held Monday, at 2:30 p.m., at Valpak with Board Member Chuck Sykes. Mr. Bourdow reviewed

the initial applications with an eye toward identifying individuals in business with a corporate

background who could understand what corporate support means in terms of the business

community. He was able to identify individuals in Tampa, Brandon, North Pinellas and reached

out to his franchisee in Port Charlotte to ensure representation on the CIG from Sarasota and

Bradenton. When we meet, we will discuss the size of our Committee, will set a first meeting

date, etc. Mr. Bourdow spoke with Mr. Kalt in an effort to broaden the reach of the Rays in the

business community with season ticket packages and sponsorships. Mr. Bourdow to meet with the

Rays’ Corporate Sales, in November if not sooner, to become educated on what programs/

packages already exist, etc. We hope to have our Committee members chosen and have had our

first meeting by October 17. Mr. Kalt reviewed some of the challenges faced by the franchise in

the short (at Tropicana Field) and long terms, i.e., tapping into corporate support, sponsorships,

boxes, season tickets, etc., and stated the biggest challenge is that each market and competition

is unique. Chair Lyash stated that best practices of the industry, what elements in a new stadium

(location, design) would assist in reaching out to the corporate base is part of what I see as the

charter of this CIG. An important part of this effort is to demonstrate we are reaching out to the

community, to provide some educational materials and to hear and consolidate the feedback.

Board Member Sher provided an update on the Stadium Options CIG and reported he is

approaching this issue as though we don’t have baseball, but are trying to get baseball and

attempting to determine where to locate a team. He proposed the following six subcommittees and

those six subcommittee chairs and Board Member Bomstein and I will comprise the Baseball

Options Committee:

• Demographic - will be a central repository for demographic data and research. The

subcommittee would collate vast amounts of information and suggested that the liaisons

to the Committee, Messrs. Mussett, Kalt, Meidel and Rogel and others who have

tremendous amounts of information, participate on this subcommittee. We need to

understand and build on the Price Waterhouse Report, to understand the characteristics

that make small markets successful, how we match up, what our market is and define

what the Tampa Bay Area is for baseball. We will need a budget for this, perhaps for

a formal survey, but we need to figure out empirically the characteristics of our

market.

A Baseball Community (ABC) Meeting

October 1, 2008 Minutes,

A Baseball Community (ABC) Meeting

October 1, 2008 Minutes

« Back