TAMPA - The Tampa Sports Authority voted Monday to delay filing a lawsuit against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The delay will give Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio a chance to broker a deal to transfer ownership of Raymond James Stadium.
Hillsborough County commissioners and the Sports Authority have voted to transfer ownership of the stadium to the county to avert a $4.3-million annual tax bill. That tax burden currently falls on county taxpayers, since a 2001 Florida Supreme Court ruling.
However, the Bucs, a party to the agreements that led to construction of Raymond James, have refused to sign off on the transfer.
They want the Sports Authority to pay for increased security and a beefed-up insurance policy on the stadium to cover reconstruction costs in the event of a huge storm or terrorist attack.
Such a policy could run the cash-strapped government agency up to $1-million a year, the authority estimates.
"I think the Buccaneers are very tough business people," said Sports Authority chairman Garry Smith. "They're very concerned about an event occurring and them not being able to do business."
Authority board members voted unanimously, with one member absent, to approve a delay.
The Sports Authority has considered suing the Bucs to get a judge to rule whether they are obligated to pick up the security and insurance tab at the level the team is demanding.
They already postponed the decision by 30 days so Hillsborough County Administrator Dan Kleman could seek a meeting with Joel Glazer, a member of the family that owns the Bucs.
Kleman said Monday he has been told that Glazer would be unavailable and has been channeled to another member of the Bucs organization. Negotiations thus far have not produced a breakthrough.
