Want to talk (downtown) baseball? Royals set Plexpod Westport Commons for first stop on listening tour
December 7, 2022 | Startland News Staff
Less than a month after announcing the Royals’ intention to build a $2 billion downtown ballpark district — a vision that would see the Major League Baseball franchise leave its longtime home at Kauffman Stadium — the team’s leadership is opening a community dialogue on its future.
The move would boost economic growth for entrepreneurs, John Sherman, chairman and CEO of the Royals, shared previously, noting the potential for new shops, hotels, restaurants and affordable housing options downtown.
John Sherman, Kansas City Royals
A public community meeting is set for 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 13 at Plexpod Westport Commons, 300 E. 39th St., to discuss the Royals moving to a new home in or around downtown Kansas City.
The gathering is expected to include presentations from Royals executives and outside experts engaged on the project and a session for questions from the audience.
Click here to RSVP for the meeting, which is expected to be the first stop on an ongoing public listening tour.
In a Nov. 15 letter to the Kansas City community, Sherman shared his vision for the team to leave the Truman Sports Complex in less than a decade.
“When its current lease in Jackson County concludes at the end of this decade [in 2031], it will be 60 years old,” Sherman’s letter read. “The renovations required at The K [Kauffman Stadium] to achieve our objectives would cost as much or more than the price tag to develop a new ballpark.”
Rendering of a potential new downtown KCMO stadium for the Kansas City Royals, image courtesy of the Royals
With the price tag for the move and ballpark district projected to surpass $2 billion, the Royals plans would be contingent on continuing its public-private partnership and investment with multiple local jurisdictions and the state of Missouri, Sherman said.
The Royals intend to invest hundreds of millions of dollars directly into the project, according to previous reporting from KCUR, with Sherman saying the franchise will not ask Jackson County citizens to pay more tax dollars than what they already do in the current lease at Kauffman Stadium, which opened in 1973.
“The Royals look forward to seeking public input about how to best serve our residents and build on the momentum our city is experiencing,” the team said in a statement announcing the Dec. 14 meeting.
RELATED: Kansas Citian of the Year: Royals owner’s work echoes legacy of Ewing Kauffman
2022 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Cassie Taylor is just getting queerer and weirder (and thanks to a wild 72 hours, she’s now a Playboy Bunny)
Be your authentic self, said Cassie Taylor, even if that means losing people along the way. “The biggest thing I’ve learned in the music industry is that if you’re not authentic, it is not sustainable — you’ll burn out fast. During the pandemic, I lost a lot of friends because I was very vocal about…
Pitch contest winners salute PHKC as fourth cohort wraps; $15K in prizes awarded to small businesses
A winning night at The Porter House KC’s pitch event this week expands opportunity for more than just the company taking home the biggest check, said Taylor Burris. AI Hub — led by Burris and her husband, James Spikes — earned first place and $8,000 in the competition, which also marked the completion of PHKC’s…
KCRise Fund closes $34M Fund III with ‘hyper-local’ focus; Here are its first four investments
A third venture capital fund — expected to invest $34 million in 20 more tech startups across the Kansas City region — builds on KCRise Fund’s thesis that high-growth local companies are the key to investor success, said Ed Frindt. It’s a competitive advantage that swells with each wave of funding, he added, announcing the…
These makers and vendors aren’t buying the scarcity mindset: ‘There’s a way for us all to eat’
A new vendor fair aims to unite people from all corners of the city and promote collaboration among the local vendor community, said entrepreneur and event organizer Dontavious Young. “I see a lot of events in Kansas City that are geared toward a specific type of crowd, or a specific type of culture, or a…