PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — County Commissioner Vince Nowicki, who just joined the board after the recent election, will meet with the Tampa Bay Rays on Wednesday to talk about the new stadium deal.

It will be the latest in a back-and-forth between the team and county in recent weeks after a Rays official hinted that the ballpark wouldn't happen. The Rays, county and city of St. Petersburg have been in a stalemate as none of them wants to be the one that officially kills the deal.

Nowicki said Tuesday he is looking to change a previously approved deal so it puts residents first.

Nowicki is one of two commissioners to recently join the board. The Rays believe both of them would vote "no" on the bonds for a new $1.3 billion stadium deal.

County Commissioner Vince Nowicki said he is looking to change a previously approved deal so it puts residents first. (Spectrum Bay News 9/Josh Rojas)

The new commissioner says the deal can be saved, but not in its current form.

“I know that behind closed doors, there's conversations taking place. So it doesn't really faze me," Nowicki said. "But, you know, I'm working to getting to a ‘yes.’"

Asked if that means he is a 'no' vote for sure, he said, "I'm a ‘no’ vote on (the) current deal 100 percent.” 

Nowicki said he reached out to the Rays to schedule the meeting.

In two weeks, county commissioners are scheduled to vote on $312 million in bonds to help pay for the Rays' new stadium.

It's a vote commissioners delayed twice since October. The Rays blame those delays for killing the deal due to cost overruns, despite stating in a recent letter that it's still in effect.

The delays took place after Hurricane Milton shredded Tropicana Field's roof in early October, rendering the stadium unusable next season. The Rays will play their 2025 schedule at Steinbrenner Field in Tampa.

Nowkicki said he doesn't want to negotiate in public but believes the Rays are getting too much taxpayer money without giving enough back in yearly rent. 

“I don’t think we’ve looked through the lens of putting residents first,” he said. “So I’m excited to have the opportunity to truly be representing the residents, to make sure the residents get a fair deal.”

If Nowicki and the other newly-elected commissioner — Chris Scherer — join with two other commissioners who previously voted ‘no” on the deal, then the stadium deal could be officially dead even though the Rays would get to keep 65 acres of Gas Plant land.

Nowicki said he believes the Rays will renegotiate because they can’t get a stadium built anywhere else in the Bay area.

“They’re not going to be able to come up with the money. The land didn’t work before, so I don’t know how all of a sudden, two years later, they’re going to find $1 billion (and) more land,” he said. “Baseball wants them to stay in the Tampa Bay area. Polk County can’t afford them. Pasco County can’t afford them, Manatee County can’t afford them.”