"Mayor Bill Foster and Tampa Bay Rays owner Stuart Sternberg will meet Jan. 17, breaking several months of silence between the two people with the most control over the club's future at Tropicana Field.

Foster said Thursday he called Sternberg in December and arranged the meeting. It will be held in St. Petersburg, but Foster wouldn't reveal a specific location or the scope of the meeting.

"We're just going to have a very candid and conversant and cordial meeting," Foster said. "Contrary to popular belief, we do talk."

Not often enough, according to City Council Chairwoman Leslie Curran, who pushed Foster last year to play a more active role in dealing with the Rays.

"It's about time," Curran said. "I'm glad he's doing that. We need to have some type of meeting to see what the future holds. This is a long time coming."

The last time Sternberg and Foster met was May, when the two spoke for about an hour after a baseball game. Their last formal meeting was in the summer of 2010. Afterward, Sternberg held a news conference announcing his desire to search for potential stadium sites throughout the area, including downtown Tampa. He believes that St. Petersburg is not a viable location for a stadium, a viewpoint that didn't change after the team drew the second lowest attendance in major league baseball despite a thrilling stretch run last season.

Foster contends that the current location is viable and that if the Rays try to negotiate for a new home outside Pinellas County it would violate the team's contract with the city. The contract requires the Rays to play at Tropicana Field through the 2027 season. "