CITY, COUNTY LEADERS SEND LETTER
City of North Kansas City and Clay County government leaders on Friday made it clear they’re serious about pursuing a new stadium to house the Kansas City Royals.
The Royals have declared a preference for a new stadium downtown. Even though North Kansas City is not Downtown KC, the Royals recently listed a North Kansas City site as one of the potential locations for a new stadium and surrounding business district.
Bryant DeLong, mayor of North Kansas City; Jerry Nolte, presiding commissioner for Clay County; and Scott Wagner, western district county commissioner for Clay County, signed a letter that was publicly distributed late last week. The letter confirms the officials at Clay County and NKC have had conversations with the Royals about a new stadium/ballpark business district.
Following is the letter in its entirety:
An Open Letter to the Kansas City Area Community:
Over the past few months leaders from Clay County and the City of North Kansas City have had conversations with the Kansas City Royals about the possibility of developing a new baseball stadium and adjacent ballpark district in North Kansas City. This plan would include commercial, residential development and entertainment experiences adjacent to the stadium, complementing the amazing business and entertainment options that already exist in downtown North Kansas City today. We look forward to continuing our work with the Royals and have additional meetings scheduled with them.
The Royals confirmed in a recent media report that they are considering a location in North Kansas City. We think it is important that we communicate our efforts with the community, and the reason we plan to work with the Royals on behalf of our respective jurisdictions to select a North Kansas City site for the planned new stadium. Although no agreement has been reached by either Clay County or North Kansas City to take action on, we are striving to lay the groundwork necessary for a plan that is positive for the city, the county and our entire community.
To date, plans and communications have been positive and resulted in an ongoing dialogue that could create a neighborhood centric ballpark, similar to Wrigley Field and the surrounding “Wrigleyville” in Chicago. Our objective is to create a place where fans and visitors to the Northland can enjoy best-in-class sports experiences and “live-work-play” in a thriving and safe urban ballpark neighborhood. A development that will take our city and region to the next level and allow Kansas City to compete head-to-head with cities like Nashville and Dallas for employers and talent, furthering the growth of the fifth largest county economically in our state. All of this can be had while still viewing and being seconds away from Downtown Kansas City. We believe the benefits that this will bring to Clay County and North Kansas City warrants public support from the Northland.
The Royals have made clear to us the logic behind their desire to move and it is compelling. The Royals vision is to develop a ballpark and district around it that will deliver positive community impact and economic activity 365 days a year ensuring their competitiveness with MLB peer markets nationwide. We simply believe, therefore, that if a move is to be, then there is no reason why it can’t be to Clay County. As we continue to move forward, our intention is to present it to our legislative bodies and our citizens the best plan possible. We are committed to that goal.
We will continue to communicate with our partners, community stakeholders and the citizens of Clay County as these discussions mature. We know there are lots of questions to answer and we will do our best to share details as they become available.
–Jerry Nolte
Presiding Commissioner
–Bryant DeLong
Mayor of NKC
–Scott Wagner
Western Commissioner
