St. Petersburg approves $22.5M roof replacement for Tropicana Field amid legal and community concerns

St. Petersburg City Council on April [date not specified] approved two resolutions to fund and authorize a guaranteed maximum price (GMP) for replacement of the top roof at Tropicana Field, the city-owned stadium long used by the Tampa Bay Rays. The council approved the funding resolution (F3A) and the GMP amendment/assignment (F3B) by roll call, with seven votes in favor and one opposed (Councilmember Richie Floyd voted no). The votes were 7–1 for each resolution.

Council members and staff said the work is necessary under the city’s existing use agreement with the Rays and Major League Baseball and that the replacement must meet current Florida Building Code wind and safety standards before the stadium can host regular-season games. Raul Quintana, director of City Engineering and Capital Improvements, told council staff and MLB consultants had tested acoustical and lighting performance for the replacement membrane and that both MLB and the Rays provided written approval of the selected white PTFE roof material.

The resolution package included a GMP in the neighborhood of $22 million for the roof work and related contract conditions; staff identified a project total estimate that remains in a broader range previously presented to council. Quintana described the GMP cost breakdown in staff remarks: roughly $19.3 million for the core construction work, subcontract fabrication and installation of the membrane (fabricated in Europe and assembled in China), plus contractor general conditions, bonds, insurance and…