KC Downtown Council calls for increased effort in stadium border war
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Downtown Council has made its push to try to get the Kansas City Royals downtown in a new stadium.
, it called for the city to work with the team and 'other political jurisdictions' on a downtown stadium. One of the reasons the council believes this issue is important is that Kansas is also trying to get the Royals to cross the state line.
'The State of Kansas is aggressively pursuing the Royals by offering a generous incentives package of STAR bonds,' part of the post read.
'We cannot ignore this very real competition.'
Ragans redeems, Caglianone homers again in Cactus League Cubs rematch
The Royals wouldn't comment on the council's post.
'Yeah,' Downtown Council Chairman Gib Kerr said when asked if Kansas scares him.
'Kansas is making a hard run at the Royals and the Chiefs for that matter. The STAR Bonds are a very powerful incentive, and there are multiple sites in Kansas that could accommodate the Royals and the Chiefs, and we have to take that seriously.'
Friday, Kansas Republican House Majority Leader Chris Croft from Overland Park told FOX4 that Kansas leaders were working every day on this issue.
'You know, there's been people saying this is a border war,' Croft said.
'There's no border war on this thing. When Missouri went first in process, and they had troubles getting that, we wanted to make sure that those teams knew that we wanted to keep them in this area.'
Because the city's supposed to be taking the lead on the Royals stadium, the question becomes whether there would need to be a vote of the people if the Royals go to Washington Square Park, a Kansas City Parks & Recreation property just east of Union Station.
'Yeah, whether it's the city or the parks department, that's yet to be determined, but my understanding is that the city or the parks department could enter into a long-term ground lease without having to go to a public vote,' Kerr said when asked if the parks department could own the property where a new Royals baseball stadium sits.
Six bold predictions for the Kansas City Royals in 2025
Friday, Kerr added a ballpark downtown would be iconic.
'Especially if it's surrounded by major cultural landmarks like Union Station, Crown Center, the World War I Museum, and of course being on the streetcar line which is going to connect the river all the way to the Plaza and all the major cultural institutions along the way,' he said.
At the Royals Rally in February, Chairman John Sherman said it was the team's objective to talk more about the stadium in the middle of the year, meaning the end of June.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
23 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Opposing MLB players share what they love about Royals' Bobby Witt Jr.'s game
Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. (7) leaves the dugout after the Yankees defeated the Royals 3-1 in Game 4 of the American League Division Series on Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, at Kauffman Stadium. The Athletic recently surveyed Major League Baseball players to see what (and who) they like and don't like these days. Those poll questions included one about which opponent they enjoy watching. Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani got the most votes, while Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. finished second. Advertisement Although Witt is just in his fourth season, he's already won a batting title, led the league in triples, won the Gold Glove and Silver Slugger Awards and was second in MVP voting a year ago. Witt, who turns 25 on Saturday, is fifth in Wins Above Replacement this season. The Athletic story included a number of comments about Witt from anonymous players. Here are a few of those quotes. One said: 'Five-tool player. Athletic, plays a premium defensive position and plays it well. He's fast and he's even got another gear when he needs it. He does a lot of things the game of baseball is catered towards, and that's what makes him so exciting.' Advertisement Another shared this: 'He doesn't have crazy size like (Aaron) Judge or Ohtani; he's pretty regular looking, but just (has) unbelievable talent. Last year was the first time I saw him live, and it was barrel, barrel, barrel. It was unreal.' And here's a third: 'He's awesome. He's really great at every tool you want: defense, arm, speed, contact, power. Good guy. Fun to watch.' You can read more of that story at The Athletic.
New York Post
2 hours ago
- New York Post
Kevin Durant prefers trade to one of these three NBA teams
Kevin Durant has narrowed his list down to three teams. The NBA superstar prefers that the Suns trade him to either the Heat, Spurs or Rockets, ESPN's Shams Charania reported Saturday night, with the 36-year-old willing to sign a contract extension with any of the three. However, the Suns have told the six-to-eight 'seriously interested' teams that they will make the trade that is best for the franchise and not based on Durant's list of desired clubs, the report said. 3 Kevin Durant prefers the Heat, Rockets or Spurs in a trade destination. Getty Images The Knicks are not in the mix for Durant, The Post's Stefan Bondy reported Wednesday. Charania said Friday on 'The Pat McAfee Show' that a Durant trade could happen in 'the next few days' and that two of Durant's preferred destinations, Miami and Houston, were among the three teams who have had 'serious traction' in trade talks with the Suns. The third team was the Timberwolves. Durant has one year left on his contract at $54.7 million for the 2025-26 NBA season. If he's traded, he'd be eligible for a two-year, $122 million contract extension beginning July 6. 3 Kevin Durant (35) drives against the Rockets' Dillon Brooks (9). Getty Images The Suns' Big 3 experiment with Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal was a failure as they got swept in the first round in the 2024 playoffs, resulting in the firing of head coach Frank Vogel after just one season. Phoenix then went 36-46 this season and missed the playoffs under Mike Budenholzer, with the club again firing its head coach after just one year. Jordan Ott, who was a Cavaliers assistant, was recently hired as the team's new coach. Durant earned his 15th career All-Star nod this past season, averaging 26.6 points, 6 rebounds and 4.2 assists in 62 games while shooting 52.7 percent from the field, including 43 percent from 3-point range. 3 Kevin Durant (35) shoots against the Timberwolves' Anthony Edwards (5). Getty Images The Heat (37-45) were swept by the top-seeded Cavaliers in the first round of the playoffs. The Rockets (52-30) were the No. 2 seed in the West but fell to the Warriors in seven games in the first round. The Spurs (34-48) missed the playoffs but figure to have a bright future with Victor Wembanyama and De'Aaron Fox. Durant was nearly traded to the Warriors at the deadline but shot down a reunion with Golden State to remain with the Suns.
USA Today
2 hours ago
- USA Today
Royals rookie John Rave honors late dad on first Father's Day as MLB player
Royals rookie John Rave honors late dad on first Father's Day as MLB player Show Caption Hide Caption Seattle Mariners' newest player shares promotion with family Cole Young announces his move to the big leagues playing for Seattle Mariners during an emotional phone call with his family. Kansas City Royals rookie outfielder John Rave stands at attention during the national anthem played before each game, but he's quietly having a private conversation to the loved one no one can see. When Rave leaves the on-deck circle to hit, he draws a cross in the dirt with his spikes in the corner of the batter's box. He steps back, touches his forehead, then his heart, and his shoulders from left to right. He glances towards the left-field foul pole, then a brief prayer, and says, 'Let's go." Rave, 27, does this every single game, and will do so again Sunday afternoon against the Athletics at Kauffman Stadium. Only this time, it will be much more emotional. You see, today is Father's Day. This is Rave's first Father's Day as a Major League baseball player. It will also be his first Father's Day as a major leaguer without his father. 'I can't begin to tell you how much I miss him," Rave says. 'I think of him every single day, every time I put on my uniform, every time I step to the plate. He meant everything to me. 'He was my biggest fan." Mike Rave was John's coach growing up. He and his wife, Sue, were the ones who were always at his games growing up, from T-ball to Little League to Central Catholic High School in Bloomington, Illinois, to Illinois State. They were there, of course, when he was selected in the fifth round of the 2019 draft by the Royals. Mike Rave, who spend his entire career as a proud insurance agent for State Farm, passed away less than a year later on Feb. 18, 2020. He was feeling ill at work, went home, fell down a flight of stairs, died from internal bleeding. John, who had just arrived into town a night earlier for a quick visit before returning to the Royals' complex in Surprise, Arizona, never got a chance to say good-bye. 'It still hurts, it always will," Rave says. 'We would talk after all every game. He always believed I could make it. He always gave me that confidence. Now, not to share this with him, it hurts.'' Rave wasn't even sure he wanted to keep playing baseball after his father passed, and certainly wasn't ready to immediately report to the Royals' minor-league camp. His big brother, Matt, assured him that he needed to leave. It was natural to grieve, but he couldn't discard his dreams. 'He didn't want to go back right away," says Matt Rave, 30, a commodity broker in the Bloomington, Illinois area. 'I told him, 'You have to go play ball. That's what you need to do. This is what Dad would want.'" Rave went back to the Royals' camp, kept grinding through the minor leagues for seven years, and two weeks before the callup of his buddy, prized outfield prospect Jac Caglianone, got the call he waited his whole life for. He was going to the big leagues. The trouble was letting everyone know. He called his wife, Amy, but the cell phone reception was so spotty she wasn't sure what was happening. 'It was probably the weirdest call-up ever," says Amy. 'I knew the game was starting, and I knew he wasn't playing, but I was confused why he was calling me. I'm in the middle of nowhere and he says he's going to Kansa City, but wasn't sure he was going to be activated. I didn't even know what he meant." He twice called his mom, Sue, but she was having lunch with friends and never picked up. She finally called back, but the service was so bad, she didn't know what was happening until calling Amy. 'I was so excited, I couldn't even function," Sue Rave says. 'I left my friends, gave them money, and headed home to pack. I kept saying, 'Oh my God, my son made it. My kid is a big-leaguer. That's John Rave. I'm his mother. I'm the mother of a major-league baseball player.' It's so surreal." There were calls to his big brother, Matt, and his sister, Sarah, 31. The next thing they all knew, they were driving six hours to Kansas City, renting an Airbnb, sitting in a suite at Kauffman Stadium, and screaming and hugging when Rave got his first hit on a bunt against the Cincinnati Reds. Only for the call to be painfully overturned. The first hit became only a sacrifice bunt. It wasn't until two days later when he made sure his first hit couldn't be overturned with a double to right field off ace Hunter Greene. 'Mike would have just been over the moon to see this," says Sue, who was married 23 years to Mike. 'When John got called up, Mike probably would have taken out a billboard to let everyone know. It's so sad he's not here, but he is here. We feel him.'' John feels his presence too, and constantly finds himself talking to him, whether it's in the dugout, standing in the outfield, or in the batter's box. When he hits a home run, he'll point to the sky looking up to his dad, pump his fist, as if his Mike could feel the strength of those knuckles. 'It's almost like a sense of calmness talking to him," says Rave, who's hitting .240 with a .606 OPS as the Royals' speedy reserve outfielder. 'I know my dad's still here. He's watching. He's got the best seat in the house. I know he's there every game with me. 'And I know he always will be." Father's Day, and every day. Follow Nightengale on X: @Bnightengale
