KC Royals choose site for new downtown stadium, sources say | Kansas City Star

At last, the Royals’ vision of downtown baseball has settled on an exact location.

The Royals on Tuesday will announce their intentions to build a stadium in the Crossroads District in downtown Kansas City, multiple sources told The Star.

They will publicize the plans, including renderings, during a 2:30 p.m. news conference at Kauffman Stadium, their current home.

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Their proposed new ballpark location would, in some fashion, incorporate the former Kansas City Star Press Pavilion at 1601 McGee St. along downtown’s south loop, a close neighbor to the Power & Light District.

The connection to the two districts would be fostered by the ongoing plans for a new $200 million park over Interstate 670.

Jackson County voters will decide whether to fund the project with an April 2 ballot measure to secure a 40-year sales tax that would send equal dollars to the Kansas City Chiefs for a renovated Arrowhead Stadium.

The site determination was one of the several looming questions the voters will have about the two teams’ stadium projects. The teams have not yet revealed community-benefits agreement packages, nor the full scope of their planned financing for their projects. Their media advisory for Tuesday’s news conference says the Royals will include more details on “progress towards lease and community benefits agreements.”

The Royals’ site selection is not without additional questions ahead of the news conference, notably how much land is needed for the project and how they will acquire it in a location that currently houses other local businesses.

The Kansas City Star vacated the green glass building in 2021. It is now owned by the Privitera family, who originally pitched the Royals on the concept last spring.

The Royals had previously examined sites at the East Village area in the northwest corner of the downtown freeway loop and another in North Kansas City. Those two were named as the lone finalists last summer, but in November, the team re-invested time into pursuing the Crossroads District possibility.

They announced last month their intentions to remain in Jackson County — pending voter approval of the sales tax. The 3/8th-cent sales tax would be split with the Chiefs, who plan to reveal their stadium renovation plans this month, sources said.

Jackson County executive Frank White vetoed the ballot measure last month, but that veto was overridden by the county legislature, ensuring its place on the April ballot. Some voters — military and overseas —can begin sending in votes as early as Friday.

The current lease and sales tax, which funded renovations at Kauffman and Arrowhead stadiums, is set to expire in 2031. The Royals have played inside Kauffman for the last 50 years, with the Chiefs as their next-door neighbors at the Truman Sports Complex.

Securing a sales tax would separate the teams for the first time in a half-century.

Ahead of the Super Bowl last week, Chiefs CEO and chairman Clark Hunt said the “primary goal” of the Chiefs’ renovation plans would be to “create additional fan amenities on all three levels. We’ll also do some things in the parking lots that will make the tailgating experience better.”

This story was originally published February 12, 2024 7:05 PM.