CLEARWATER — Pinellas County on April 21 approved a non-binding term sheet with the Philadelphia Phillies for a major overhaul of the team’s spring training complex in Clearwater, committing $85 million in tourist development tax money toward the project.
The vote passed 6-1, with Commissioner Brian Scott the lone no vote. Clearwater City Council gave initial approval at an April 20 work session and formally approved the terms April 23.
The $205 million renovation would extend the team’s lease, which ends in 2028, through 2047, with two automatic five-year renewals. The Phillies have trained in Clearwater since 1947, giving the city the second-longest continuous spring training relationship in Major League Baseball, behind only Lakeland and the Detroit Tigers.
Under the funding plan, Clearwater would contribute $30 million, the state $20 million and the Phillies a minimum of $75 million. The team would cover any cost overruns.
Clearwater’s share would come from $16.55 million in Penny for Pinellas sales tax funds, a $12 million interest-free interfund loan from the city’s central insurance fund and $1.45 million from general fund reserves.
Scott has raised concerns in recent weeks about the size of the public contribution.
“I absolutely believe that we should be at the table with this, and we should be supporting the Phillies,” Scott said. “I just think this is a lopsided deal.”
Commissioner Chris Latvala contrasted the agreement with the Tampa Bay Rays’ pursuit of more than $1 billion in public money for a new stadium in Hillsborough County, after a plan to keep that team in Pinellas fell through last year.
“Last year we dealt with another stadium issue that caused a lot of headaches for a lot of folks,” Latvala said. “I voted against that because the citizens and residents of the city of St. Pete, I believe, were getting hoaxed.”
The Phillies’ request for tourist tax money has grown from $40 million in 2019, but the overall project cost has dropped from a 2022 estimate of $300 million.
The renovations would expand BayCare Ballpark’s capacity by 700 seats and include new field lights and a video board, an expanded concourse, a larger west plaza entrance and an expanded center field fan deck. The team store would be enlarged, new center field restrooms added and the Diamond Dugout restrooms expanded. Frenchy’s Tiki Deck would remain.
A three-story addition in the stadium’s southwest corner would house technical, maintenance and kitchen operations, and a two-story center field building would add restrooms and an elevator to a new fan observation deck.
About 50,000 square feet of home and visitor clubhouse space would be renovated to meet MLB and Player Development License standards, with expanded amenities for male and female coaches, staff and players.
At the Carpenter Complex, a baseball lab would be built inside the Montgomery Building, and the 17,000-square-foot Owens Building and 3,700-square-foot groundskeeping building would be updated. Field drainage and water retention systems also would be upgraded.
Under the lease, the Phillies would pay the city $350,000 a year to use BayCare Ballpark and $200,000 a year for the Carpenter Complex, adjusted annually by the Consumer Price Index, plus $1.20 for each spring training ticket sold. The city would contribute $85,000 for field supplies in the first year, also adjusted by CPI.
A city-commissioned economic impact study projected $1.6 billion in economic activity over 20 years. Spring training drew 143,352 paid fans in 2026, and the Phillies led the Grapefruit League at 106% of capacity and hosted the league’s highest single-game attendance.
“This relationship is unique,” Mayor Bruce Rector said. “We are able to work with one of the best organizations in all of professional sports.”
Brian Aungst Jr., representing the Phillies, said the team hopes to carry the partnership to its 100-year mark.
“The Phillies have been intrinsically entwined in the fabric of the Clearwater community for 80 years,” he said.
The Phillies’ Clearwater campus includes BayCare Ballpark, the Carpenter Complex and a residential property. The Class A Clearwater Threshers also play at the ballpark. In 2022, the team bought an adjacent shopping center to the south for $22.5 million as part of a long-term plan to redevelop the corner.
- Times staff writer Colbi Edmonds contributed to this report