ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - A decade-plus saga of the Tampa Bay Rays stadium pursuit may appear to be headed to a conclusion.

The team is set to announce a deal Tuesday to build a new stadium in downtown St. Petersburg. A news conference is scheduled for 10:30 a.m.

The 30,000-seat domed facility would be built near the current Tropicana Field site as part of the 86-acre Historic Gas Plant District redevelopment project. The new stadium would open for the 2028 season.

Stadium cost would be in excess of $1.2 billion, with contributions from the team, St. Petersburg and Pinellas County.

The Pinellas Tourism Development Council doles out how to spend the $94 million the agency collects in bed tax each year. There is no doubt that the Rays need some of that money to build the new ballpark.

Rays principal owner Stuart Sternberg said in early September he anticipated the team would pay for "half or more" of a stadium project, according to our partners at the Tampa Bay Times.

Pinellas County and the city of St. Petersburg are expected to pay for the other half, along with outside investors.

The team's current lease at Tropicana runs through the 2027 season.

The team's stadium pursuit has been an ongoing odyssey that has prompted ballpark ideas in Pinellas County, Hillsborough County and surrounding areas. In 2016, the team received permission from St. Petersburg to pursue a stadium in Tampa but despite a site location being determined in the Ybor City-Channelside area, no financing could be worked out.

There was even a more recent flirtation with the city of Montreal over a split-city plan. That idea eventually was shot down by Major League Baseball.

In January, St. Pete Mayor Ken Welch announced his choice of the Hines-Rays team to redevelop Tropicana Field and the surrounding Gas Plant District, ending the years-long search for a developer. Part of the Hines-Rays plan includes building more affordable housing, outdoor space and entertainment, in addition to a new stadium.

Following Welch's announcement, Rays president Brian Auld said it was a big step toward keeping the team in St. Pete, but they wouldn't take Tampa off the table yet.

A new deal would seemingly end any Tampa stadium pursuit.

Tampa Mayor Jane Castor said she hoped the Rays would play in Tampa but stressed that having the team remain in this market was key.

“Whether you’re a sports fan or not, professional sports make a big difference in your community," she said. "And we are so very fortunate to have the Tampa Bay Rays, Buccaneers, the Lightning and bringing on a women’s professional soccer team. 

“Our teams are Tampa Bay teams and just because they’re physically located in one city or another, we’re all Tampa Bay fans.”