ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — A vote that would formally green light repairs to hurricane-damaged Tropicana Field has been delayed until next month.

City Council member Corey Givens Jr said an email bumping the vote came from the city administrator Friday as council members were preparing to return from spring break.

Givens said he felt blindsided and there was no reason listed for the delay, but fears pushing the vote even further could complicate plans or make the project more expensive.

“Kicking the can down the road is going to make matters even worse,” he said. “I’m looking forward to finding this out myself, why this has been delayed. I’m certainly open to transparency and communication, which is something we haven’t been getting.”

To date, the repairs to fix Tropicana Field are expected to cost the city just over $22 million.

The vote regarding ballpark repairs is now slated to take place in early April.

This delay puts the vote after the March 31 deadline when the Rays would have had to formally move forward with the deal. While owner Stu Sternberg announced on March 13 that the Rays do not plan to move forward, the contract formally expires at the end of the month.

Due to spring break, Thursday also marks the first time city council members are meeting since the Rays announced they would not be moving forward with the new stadium plans. While there’s no formal agenda item regarding the failed deal, a topic regarding property insurance for Tropicana Field is listed on the agenda.

St. Pete Mayor Ken Welch says he plans to move forward with redeveloping parts of the Historic Gas Plant District while also leaving a window open for negotiations only if there is a new ownership group.

“We’re not going to hold up the development of that land for another 20 years or 15 years, because of the latest speculative offer that was made out there,” he said.

Welch says city council members now have a lot to talk about.

He went on to say that he has not seen any documentation from the Rays regarding their claim that a series of delays at the city and county level made the new ballpark project more expensive.

“No, I don’t buy it,” he said. “I have asked several times. They show me what the cost overrun is, so that proof has never been provided… if you really want help to address that gap, then you show your partners what that gap is.”

In a statement, Sternberg said he anticipates the Rays will be playing at Tropicana Field again starting Opening Day 2026.

That leaves less than a year for repairs to be completed.