See new renderings of proposed Rays stadium, Gas Plant District

ST. PETERSBURG — As St. Petersburg City Council members on Thursday prepared to delve into the details of a proposed agreement for the development of the Historic Gas Plant District, they got a new look at the vision the Tampa Bay Rays and the team’s development partner, Hines, have for the project.

So fresh were the renderings presented at Thursday’s council meeting, team President Brian Auld said, that designers were working on them “through the night last night.” They represent some of the most detailed glimpses so far into how the proposal — which includes a new Rays ballpark, a concert venue, a new home for the Woodson African American Museum of Florida, thousands of residential units and hundreds of hotel rooms — could look.

For context, below are before-and-after images of how the Tropicana Field site looks now, and how the same site could look as the Historic Gas Plant District.

While the renderings do not include any new looks inside the proposed stadium, they do show daytime and evening images of a promenade just outside. Businesses in the background include bars, cafes and a brewery.

The presentation also included a fresh look at a street lined with offices and other businesses, as well as a partial look at a new Woodson African American Museum, which would sit just outside the stadium. Adjacent to the museum would be a 5,000-capacity concert venue.

At its proposed size and location, the concert venue might resemble Daily’s Place, a small amphitheater outside the Jacksonville Jaguars’ EverBank Stadium. A small portion of the venue and Woodson Museum can be seen in the bottom right corner of the below image, which also shows a retail complex, hotel and convention center.