The Royals and Chiefs ownership groups are looking for stadium upgrades.
The National Football League’s 2024-2025 regular season is done and Clark Hunt’s Kansas City Chiefs’ franchise still does not have a plan to renovate its stadium. Hunt’s Chiefs franchise has the playoffs ahead and probably there will be no word on stadium plans for a while. Hunt’s Truman Sports Complex neighbor, Major League Baseball’s Kansas City Royals owner, John Sherman, also has been relatively quiet about his stadium situation. Sherman wanted to leave the complex and head downtown by around 2028 but that is not happening unless Sherman reaches an agreement with Kansas City politicians and has a financial deal in place by tomorrow. The problem for both Hunt and Sherman began in April 2024 when Jackson County, Missouri voters said no to extending a sales tax that would have funded a Kansas City Royals’ downtown stadium and would renovate Hunt’s football venue.
There is nothing new from Kansas where local politicians have indicated that they might want the Chiefs and Royals’ businesses in their state. Kansas lawmakers are still mulling over a proposal that would see STAR bonds used to help pay 75% of the cost of building two stadiums in Kansas. Additionally, sports gambling and lottery gaming and sales tax revenue from businesses in the stadium development districts would cover bond debt. Another source of revenue to pay off the debt would come from a liquor tax. Kansas lawmakers could use a mechanism that would allow up to 100% of sales tax revenue on alcoholic liquor sales within a stadium district to pay off bonds for the structures. Hunt and Sherman should be in a good spot in 2025 as two states, Missouri with a new governor and Kansas, might be ready to throw money at them to build stadiums for their businesses. It is a place that sports owners dream about.
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