This story will be updated.
The Kansas City Royals will build the team’s new baseball stadium in the Crossroads district, team owners announced Tuesday.
The long-awaited reveal follows months of speculation, rumors, unanswered questions and political squabbles over the future of the Royals in Jackson County. It also comes about five months after the team’s original September deadline to choose a ballpark location.
The new stadium will take the place of the former Kansas City Star printing press, which covers the block from Truman Road to 17th Street and McGee Street to Oak Street.
The Royals’ plans include a baseball stadium, team offices, a hotel, a residential and entertainment venue, improvements to Grand Boulevard and a bridge connecting the stadium to the planned $200 million South Loop Link project.
The development spans from Grand Boulevard east to Locust Street, and Truman Road south to 17th Street.
The Royals said the entire development will require a $2 billion investment, which the team says is the largest public-private partnership in Jackson County. The Royals say they will invest $1 billion of private funds into the project.
The Crossroads location was not on the team’s shortlist of ballpark locations last fall. At that time, the Royals were choosing between a new stadium in downtown Kansas City’s East Village or in North Kansas City. The team decided to revisit a possible Crossroads site in November.
The Jackson County Legislature last month approved an April 2 ballot question asking whether to renew the 3/8th-cent sales tax that funds the Chiefs and Royals stadiums for an additional 40 years. That revenue will be split equally between the teams.
Both teams have said that tax is crucial to keep them in Jackson County.
Jackson County Executive Frank White said Tuesday that the Royals, public officials and stakeholders need to work together to inform the public.
“The voters of Jackson County are owed a complete accounting of the economic impacts, the financial commitments required from them and how this stadium will benefit the community at large,” he said in a statement.
A sports stadium in an arts district
The Royals’ decision places a sports stadium in the middle of a popular arts district known for its locally-owned breweries, bars, coffee shops and its monthly First Fridays events.
Crossroads Community Association member David Johnson said businesses are anxious.
“These are people we know — they're entrepreneurs and small businesses that have worked hard to renovate dilapidated spaces into something that makes the Crossroads a unique mixed use community that is focused on creative uses and the visual arts in particular,” Johnson said.
But the Royals owners say the Crossroads location is ideal given its proximity to existing entertainment districts.
A stadium along McGee Street would connect to the Crossroads, Power and Light and the South Loop Link project to build an urban park atop the downtown loop.
Royals officials added that the Crossroads location will not require any new parking structures to be built, as existing parking downtown can accommodate fans who drive to games.
Both teams have signed a letter of intent that outlines the teams’ broad plans for their future in the county. But neither has signed a legally binding lease or development agreement — which some Jackson County officials, including County Executive Frank White, have criticized.
The Royals say they hope to open the stadium to fans by 2028.
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