(UPDATE 6:05 p.m.) St. Petersburg City Council has passed the stadium site search deal 5-3.
Earlier:
The third time could be the charm for St. Petersburg city council and the Tampa Bay Rays.
Council is voting on a deal that would allow the team to look outside St. Petersburg in Pinellas and Hillsborough counties for a new stadium site.
The deal has the Rays paying up to $24 million if the team bails out of its contract to play home games at Tropicana Field before 2027.
It also bars the team from any re-development proceeds on the 85 acre stadium site.
But if the team ends up staying in St. Petersburg until or beyond 2027, it would get some of the money from the sale of the property.
This is the third time city council has voted on a stadium site search deal.
The other two times, various council members wanted more than $30 million if the team left the Trop early.
