St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch announced his selection of The Burg Bid as the preferred plan for redeveloping Tropicana Field and the surrounding Historic Gas Plant District, a proposal that outlines an $8.1 billion mixed‑use development.

The plan calls for purchasing 58 acres of city‑owned land for $275 million and constructing 3,600 income‑restricted housing units over 15 years, along with a museum, cultural park, workforce training center, hotels, offices and retail space.

The development would be organized around Samuel Davis Park, a 13‑acre civic and cultural space that would house the Woodson African American Museum of Florida and other amenities, and would include a 4,000‑to‑5,000‑seat Resilience Event Center designed to serve as a generator‑powered hurricane evacuation shelter.

The project is divided into three five‑year phases; Phase 1 would establish cultural and workforce anchors such as the Woodson and the Collaboratorium, Phase 2 would add mixed‑income neighborhoods and expand connections to existing arts districts, and Phase 3 would complete the district with additional retail, hotel and event facilities. Partners include Blue Sky Communities, the Pinellas County Housing Authority, CareerSource Tampa Bay, the St. Petersburg Chamber of Commerce and other local organizations.

The proposal must be negotiated with the development team, approved by the City Council and could be affected by the upcoming mayoral election; Council Member Brandi Gabbard has called for a slower review and questioned the wisdom of selling the land outright versus using long‑term ground leases.