As Royals playoff baseball returns to the K, questions surrounding potential new stadium persist
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) - It’s a great time to be a Kansas City sports fan.
On Monday night, fans saw the Chiefs beat the New Orleans Saints at Arrowhead and the Royals tie up the series against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium. The Royals are now heading back to Kauffman Stadium for the first playoffs at home in nearly a decade.
“It is so rare in the history of Kansas City sports that we have had such greatness coincide,” said Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas. “I think it’s cool for exposure to Kansas City. I was watching a national morning news show today and the people were saying Kansas City has it going on.
“That’s what I think is excited about this moment and I look forward to more of these moments ahead.”
Lucas traveled up to New York for Game 2 of the American League Division Series and watched with Kansas City, native, Nick Wright, who co-hosts ‘First Things First’ on Fox Sports 1.
“It was a great crowd at Yankee Stadium,” said Lucas. “Primarily Yankees fans, but you had a set of Kansas Citians there. Folks who were excited by how quickly we went up in the game and more importantly, how great the team played throughout. You look at those two games in New York, one that was such a close loss, the other which was a pretty dominant performance. It has us excited getting back to Kansas City and instead of us just saying we’ll look competitive, I’m excited for us to talk about winning the whole series.”
As fans are celebrating, many are also wondering where the teams stand when it comes to continuing to play in Kansas City. After the stadium sales tax didn’t pass earlier this year, the question as remained up in the air as both teams have continued to say they are exploring their options.
In late August, Kansas City developers, architects, and marketing firms said they have an idea for a downtown Royals stadium that wouldn’t displace any local businesses or homes.
Highline Partners, 3-D Development, and BNIM Architects presented renderings showing a new Royals stadium in Washington Square Park, right across from Union Station.
“We already have control of a site that requires zero displacement of local businesses,” Erik Wullschleger with 3-D Development said back in August. “The only demolition of a building would be one that is being vacated by Blue Cross and Blue Shield.”
KCTV reached back out to Wullschleger on Tuesday to see if there were any updates. He stated there was nothing they could comment on at this time.
The idea to place a stadium in Washington Square Park would not require approval from voters and would potentially give the city ownership of the ballpark.
KCTV also reached out to Jackson County legislators and the County Executive for comment. Many either didn’t respond or declined to comment, but Sean Smith, Legislator for District 6, stated, “Parks and green spaces have been shown to reduce crime. Eliminating park space in Kansas City doesn’t seem like the best option. I also have concerns about transportation with this new proposed site. Kauffman has shown us what a beautiful, accessible stadium can be. Any proposed new site should seek to improve and build upon that legacy.”
Back in August, Legislator Donna Peyton, whose district includes Washington Square Park, sent KCTV a statement expressing support:
“I support this effort to offer an option to keep our beloved Kansas City Royals in Jackson County. Although these plans are preliminary, I see this as possibly a viable location option. It will be interesting to hear what the KC Royals think. And even better, it would be great to have a plan in place to begin negotiations with the team to keep them in Jackson County and Kansas City.”
On Tuesday, Mayor Lucas said there are no updates to conversations surrounding a ballpark in Washington Square Park at this time. He said the conversations about keeping both the Royals and the Chiefs in Kansas City and Jackson County continue, which he says the city is playing an active role in.
“I know the Royals are going to continue to evaluate all the options they have, but I’m very confident that when we get to the end of this conversation the Royals will be playing in Kansas City for years to come,” said Lucas. “I do think the Royals will be downtown. I think the Chiefs will continue to be at the Truman Sports Complex.”
KCTV reached out to the Royals for comment. The team declined to comment on anything related to stadium talks, but said they are thrilled for their fans to have playoffs back in Kansas City and cannot wait to feel the energy in the K Wednesday night.
For more coverage of the stadium developments, click here.
Copyright 2024 KCTV. All rights reserved.
