ORLANDO, Fla. — The push to bring Major League Baseball to Central Florida is moving forward, with the Orlando Dreamers releasing new renderings of a proposed state-of-the-art stadium and preparing to ask Orange County for hundreds of millions of dollars in tourism tax revenue.
The group plans to request $975 million in Tourist Development Tax money to help fund the project, which the Dreamers estimate would cost about $2 billion overall.
The proposed stadium would be a centerpiece of the Dreamers’ effort to attract an MLB franchise to the Orlando area.
Plans call for a domed, 45,000-seat stadium along the International Drive tourism corridor near State Road 528, with additional development planned around the ballpark.
The Dreamers say the project would create thousands of jobs and bring significant economic benefits to Orange County.
An updated economic impact study released by the group projects more than 38,000 construction jobs and more than 52,000 permanent jobs tied to the development.
The study also estimates billions of dollars in economic impact over several decades.
The funding request comes as Orange County weighs how to spend a record amount of tourism tax revenue.
The county’s Tourist Development Tax Task Force is reviewing nearly $3 billion in requests for a limited pool of available funds, including the Dreamers’ stadium proposal.
The Dreamers say private funding would cover a significant portion of the project, with the tourism tax contribution helping make the stadium possible.
The group argues that an MLB team would strengthen Orlando’s position as a major sports and entertainment destination.
The proposal still faces a lengthy review process, and Orange County leaders will have to decide whether to recommend dedicating a large share of tourism tax dollars toward the baseball stadium or other competing projects.
For the Dreamers, the goal remains bringing a Major League Baseball team to a growing region that currently does not have an MLB franchise.
The group says the new renderings represent another step in its effort to show league officials that Orlando is ready to step up to the plate.
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