Pieces are falling into place for the Rays to train at a new complex in Pasco County and play 40 home games a year in a new Ybor City stadium.

• Both venues could be connected to the region via a network of trains, bike lanes and ferry services scheduled to be in place by 2030.
• And Tampa area lawmakers have requested nearly $30 million from the state to pay for public transportation and pedestrian safety enhancements around the potential stadium site.

Driving the news: A spate of recent developments suggest the Rays' Ybor City stadium project is picking up momentum as 2027 approaches, the year the team's lease expires at St. Pete's Tropicana Field.

Catch up quick: Tampa Mayor Jane Castor met just last week with Rays owner Stu Sternberg to talk Ybor City and the Rays called it "very productive," per the Tampa Bay Times.

• Castor then announced plans to meet "very soon" with the Rays and the Tampa Sports Authority to discuss funding, evidently in the works for months.

State of play: The Times noted that both Castor and Senate President Wilton Simpson said the Rays were looking at eastern Pasco for a training complex.

• Trilby-native Simpson said state funding wouldn't be hard if the deal was right.
• Commissioner Mike Moore, chairman of the county's Tourist Development Council, tells Axios he's excited at the prospect and looks forward to "continuing the conversations."

Why it matters: The Rays have shopped for sites in Ybor for at least four years and for training sites in Pasco's Wiregrass Ranch area for "several years," per the Times.

• What's different? A willing developer has invited the Rays to play ball.
• Ybor developer Darryl Shaw, whose Gas Worx plan would accommodate a new stadium in an urban neighborhood, approves of the Sister Cities plan the Rays have committed to, his rep tells Axios.

What we're watching: The money. Rays president Brian Auld is saying the stadium will cost ~$700 million and the Rays will pay half.

💰 That leaves a steep tab for a town that knows how to complain.

In a spicy column for the Florida Phoenix, St. Petersburg author Craig Pittman sounded off on policy changes he says endanger Florida's gopher tortoises.

What's happening: Last month, Florida FWC Executive Director Eric Sutton waived several longstanding regulations regarding the moving of gopher tortoises for new development.

• This includes a rule that bans moving a tortoise more than 100 miles away from its home.

Why it matters: Florida gopher tortoises are threatened, and the tunnels they build are also home to other threatened or endangered species.

• The sandy scrub they build those tunnels in is a hot spot for building houses, but the price of relocating the tortoises is going way up.
• Pittman reports that moving them more than 100 miles north or south not only disrupts their existing genetic connections, but also their ability to adapt to a new environment.

What they're saying: "Nobody knew it was coming," Gopher Tortoise Council co-chair Jeff Goessling told Pittman.

• When Goessling first read the order "it caused me to go into a state of shrieking."
• The commission did not immediately respond to Axios' requests for comment.

What's next: The commission is supposed to get a report on these changes tomorrow.

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Former NFL wide receiver Josh Bellamy, from St. Petersburg, was sentenced to more than three years in prison for his involvement in a COVID-19 relief fraud scheme. (Tampa Bay Business Journal)

⛳️ Residents of North Port's Bobcat Trail community are upset to learn their beloved — but failed — golf course is up for sale for $13 million. (North Port Sun)

A group of citizens filed a lawsuit against the city of Tarpon Springs, asking a judge to overturn approval for an apartment complex on the Anclote River they say is "fatally flawed." (WMNF)

❓ No information has been available for weeks about the location or condition of a Washington state senator who was opposed to anti-COVID-19 measures but reportedly is now in a Florida hospital being treated for it. (Associated Press)

The University of Florida board of trustees on Friday awarded a posthumous doctorate to Thomas Earl Petty, who was never enrolled at UF but once worked as a groundskeeper.

You may remember from my DalMoros item that I consider fresh pasta one of the best things in life.

🍝 Well, there's another fresh pasta spot in downtown St. Pete: Matteo Trattoria & Pizzeria, an LA-based chain that also has a Tampa location.

I'd been meaning to try the place since it opened in July on Central Avenue. Now that I finally have, I'm kicking myself.

• The cacio e pepe had that beautiful bite to it that I love in a fresh pasta.
• The house-made gnocchi was so soft, I wanted to order a giant one to rest my head on.

With heavy dishes like those, I usually end up feeling gross from all the grease. But even though I couldn't help but eat the whole thing, I felt fine.

• My only regret is not visiting sooner.