The Rays should declare in writing whether they want to pursue an existing financing plan for a new $1.3 billion ballpark or walk away from the deal, a top county official says.

In a sometimes scolding letter, Pinellas County Commission Chair Kathleen Peters flatly asks officials with the Tampa Bay Rays if they are in or out on a $1.3 billion stadium deal the team agreed to four months ago.

There's already uncertainty about whether or not the local legislature will approve bonds, and now the Rays have to decide how ready they are to commit to this project.

The Pinellas County Board of County Commissioners has given the Tampa Bay Rays a Dec. 1 deadline to either commit to the agreement for a new stadium or provide a notice of termination.

Engineers completed an assessment of hurricane damage to the team's current ballpark, but plans to build a new $1.3-billion stadium could be falling apart.

The Pinellas County Commission asked the Tampa Bay Rays this week if they're in or out when it comes to a stadium deal. The letter from board Chairwoman Kathleen Peters gives the Major League Baseball team a Sunday deadline to decide whether the club wants to proceed with a $1.