Are the Kansas City Royals willing to leave Kauffman Stadium?

The Kansas City Royals new owner John Sherman could be open to constructing a new ballpark in downtown Kansas City.

Speculation is building that the new owner of the Kansas City Royals may be open to building a new stadium somewhere in downtown Kansas City.

John Sherman, whose purchase of the Royals from David Glass was announced last week, has not spoken publicly about that idea. The notion of the Royals leaving Kauffman Stadium for a downtown site was first surfaced in the Kansas City Star Tuesday.

Sherman’s purchase still must be approved by MLB owners, an action that cannot take place prior to the season’s end. However, that approval is expected to be given.

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The new owner-to-be is a long-time member of the Kansas City community who is well-known for his interest in downtown development. That’s one of the factors driving speculation about a new ballpark. The Kansas City Royals have played at Kauffman Stadium since it was opened as part of the Truman Sports Complex in 1973. The complex, which also hosts the NFL’s Kansas City Chiefs, is on the city’s eastern fringes.

The Star notes that Sherman was once part of a group that looked to the development of a downtown sports facility in St. Louis. He is also a member of a Kansas City downtown council, which is involved in funding a new study on downtown development.

When the Truman Complex was opened, it was viewed as a state-of-the-art complex demonstrating how cities could balance the demands of professional baseball and football franchises. Near the juncture of major interstates, it houses both Kauffman and Arrowhead Stadium amid a vast array of parking.

In recent years, however, teams and cities have both found it advantageous to locate facilities in inner-city areas where they can be the focal points of broader development efforts. That’s what happened in Baltimore with Camden Yards, in Cleveland with Progressive Field, and in Denver with Coors Field.

The Oakland Athletics have put forward a plan to construct a new stadium that they believe would offer the same benefits to downtown Oakland.

In Chicago, the Cubs have taken the idea one step further in their recent redevelopment of Wrigley Field. The team has purchased much of the area surrounding the ballpark and is developing that area in concert with the ballpark.

Downtown Kansas City is at present a mixture of areas, some recently developed and others in need of redevelopment. Notably, the Sprint Center, which annually hosts numerous college basketball and other events, has become a popular destination that has revitalized the once-deteriorating Power and Light District.

In its article, The Star raises the possibility that an area on the fringe of the Power and Light District may be one site under consideration.

One unanswered question is the level, if any, of public financial support that would be required to make any such plan a reality. About 15 years ago, Kansas City voters approved a three-eighths cent sales tax increase to fund improvements to Kauffman Stadium.

Another potential drawback involves the team’s lease at Kauffman Stadium, which currently extends to 2031.  If the team puts forward a plan that is seen among city leaders as advantageous to the ongoing existence of downtown, it’s entirely possible that an amicable solution to the lease could be arranged. That, however, assumes that approval of voters either would not be needed, or could be obtained.