The Brief

- Just one day before they ask St. Petersburg City Council for $22.7 million to rebuild the roof of Tropicana Field, city staffers showed the damaged MLB stadium during a walk-through of the facility.

"We're contractually obligated to make it playable for Major League Baseball," said Beth Herendeen, the manager of special projects for the City of St. Pete, "and we have to meet Major League Baseball standards."

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Staff members said they are hopeful that they will be able to have Tropicana Field ready for baseball and fans by Opening Day of 2026.

"By getting started when we start, it builds us the leeway and the opportunity to get it done in time," said Herendeen.

If approved by councilors, the roof would be made of a thicker material than the roof that was blown off the Trop by Hurricane Milton. The hope is to start that construction by August.

Some work can be done in the meantime, but much of the repairs will have to take place once the roof is on and tested for waterproofing. They hope that by December, workers can start on the electronics that got damaged in the storm.

Until then, the second deck, outfield seats and dugouts are sealed by waterproof tarps and concourses have temporary doors.

"T here are some things that are not in the way of the roof replacement construction, or B, that won't be damaged because of [a new] storm," said St. Pete city architect Raul Quintana.

The Tampa Bay Rays have said they are working on finding ideas and investors for a new ballpark somewhere in the Tampa Bay area . But because of the missed year, Tropicana Field's lease now extends until the end of the 2028 season, meaning the Trop could see another three years of baseball.

The roof will be fixed one panel at a time.

The city is hoping that FEMA will reimburse at least some costs of the repairs. City Council will be meeting Thursday morning to approve the roof repair.

The Source: The information in this story was gathered during a walk-through with St. Pete city staffers of the damaged Tropicana Field.