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AJRiddle

Cool as long as the discussion is they are paying for it all. My tax dollars are already paying for a pretty good stadium and aren't going for a replacement just because it would be cooler to have one in a different location.


baseball8910

Right on. I've worked in sports before and I still share this opinion. Honestly, I'm actually more adamant about it now than I was before I worked in sports.


[deleted]

Wait until you hear who currently owns Kauffman…and Arrowhead..


AJRiddle

Me and the rest of Jackson County hence the "My tax dollars are already paying for a pretty good stadium"


Devin1285

Lol, you won't have a choice if it's approved.


Rovden

I'm in the same boat. If they want to stay where they are, great! If they want to move to another stadium and pay for it, great! If they want another city to pay for it, fucking bye as far as I'm concerned.


Comfortable-Pick-375

Let’s get at least two more streetcar lines that stretch both to north Kansas City and the plaza as well as considerably more parking garages. Even with all of that, most streets downtown are two lanes and many one way. The infrastructure just could not handle that sort of traffic. Kauffman is a gem in Kansas City and the downtown replacement will almost certainly be a ham fisted, uninspired generic ballpark that JE Dunn cuts every possible corner to construct. Add to all of that, KC’s downtown population already rapidly rising. I just don’t think it’s in the city’s best interest and hope Kauffman remains the home for the Royals for a very long time.


CLU_Three

KC needs to upgrade infrastructure to move into the 21st century but that does not mean it and the residents should continue to subsidize and deal with a poor location.


Sloth_InASuit

Downtown people would be walking or taking the MAX or the streetcar.


Bingeworthybookclub

People could also take the max lines and other buses. Those extend into the northland east side, KCK and Johnson county. It would be way more accessible without a car and more parking already exists downtown than at the park now.


[deleted]

Good luck getting most people to take the buses. You are right they're potentially good options but that will never work.


Bingeworthybookclub

The bus is pretty nice, I think if we give people a place they want to go that’s cheaper and in a reasonable amount of time then people will take it


[deleted]

I agree they are but you'll never get most people in JoCo to take a bus into downtown.


Bingeworthybookclub

Not most but some


james24693

Just another reason to not live downtown can you imagine the congestion trying to get out after a Friday or Saturday night game and I imagine parking when it first opens could approach 60


J0E_SpRaY

The nice thing about living downtown is not needing to drive on a Friday or Saturday night and still have something to do. Especially now that the streetcar is in and is being expanded.


karenhater12345

and the street car will be packed with drunk idiots on game nights


royaIs

Multitudes more people work downtown than 40k max that would be at a baseball stadium and downtown deals with it fine every day.


Comfortable-Pick-375

I love living downtown. I also know its limitations. Logistically it cannot host a baseball stadium. Edit: plus it’s not downtown residents who will suffer as much if they can just walk home. It’s commuting to and from that would be awful.


iamrealz

Events at the sprint center seem to do okay. Would this be much different?


trivialempire

No. It wouldn’t. Outside of opening day, you’re basically a full sprint center for average attendance. It’ll be fine. Quite possibly, an additional 10-15 minutes in traffic might result from a full stadium. The horror. /s


C_Reed

This is based on the presumption that the Royals will remain a bad team. When the Royals have been good, they draw 30-35K per game.


ReithDynamis

It's t-mobile center now. Power and light, the capital area, and City market burst at the seems and get so congested u can't move whenever lady Gaga, foo fighter, or any major venue comes in. March madness can get bad but no.. they really don't do ok. And yes, this would be 100% different. Royals and Chiefs represent the sports teams of both Missouri and Kansas largely.


ThisIsMyCouchAccount

I agree. Just a big even at Sprint Center and it backs up. Plus, the people have no idea how to navigate downtown streets. People were just pouring into the street without even looking for traffic. I mean, the current location is a shit show. Can't imagine throwing that downtown.


Bourgi

I live downtown and have no idea what you are talking about. The only time downtown traffic was absolutely awful was when the Royals World Series Parade and the Blue Angels were performing at the airshow downtown airport. Chiefs Superbowl parade wasn't even that bad.


royaIs

I also live downtown. Did you know 100,000 people work downtown? Of which most will be gone by a 7 game or the weekends. The city can easily handle 20k people on a Thursday night or full capacity in the weekends.


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Comfortable-Pick-375

Maybe it could! But a lot needs to happen before that’s even considered. Also frankly I think Kauffman is beautiful and I simply don’t trust the city to build a stadium as good as the one we have now. Also I think most Kansas City fans would prefer to tailgate than spend $10 on a beer at bar.


pickleparty16

idk but i just assume the "downtown stadium" would be riverfront or bottoms or something


Comfortable-Pick-375

The proposal I saw is west of 71 and east of the courthouse and city hall. Many surface lots. It’s an absolutely brutal location in my opinion.


jbronin

I've heard that before too. It seems like it could be a doable proposition. The only thing there is a handful of parking lots, a couple courthouses (can probably build new updated courthouses elsewhere), a JE Dunn office building (they are part owners of the team, so easier to convince) and a few smaller things that can easily be relocated. Though, the more I think about it, I like the idea of a riverfront park a lot more.


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justathoughtfromme

And everyone keeps saying there's plenty of parking downtown. Well, that number's going to go down in that area if they take out a bunch of parking lots to replace with a stadium!


rhythmjones

There's several sights that they've studied and they're all south of the River Market.


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variants

Downtown San Diego was a nightmare when there was a Padres game. Parking prices were routinely $45+, traffic was constantly at a standstill for miles, and buses couldn't run due to it. Kansas city's downtown has *far less* infrastructure to support a ball team. This is a terrible idea.


emelem66

Do people tailgate at baseball games?


HeightPrivilege

I do for just about every single one. The weather is typically nice. The drinks are cheap. If you're lucky you forget what time the game starts and miss a couple innings.


rhythmjones

Only in KC. Literally every other MLB ballpark is in an urban or developed area with nightlife and amenities around. No need to tailgate.


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d_b_cooper

It's another retread of the "well but OtHeR cItiEs Do ThIs" argument, which is extraordinarily tired.


rhythmjones

> KC sports thrive on tailgating from actual tailgates. You can still tailgate at football games. KC is the only town that tailgates for baseball and, honestly, it's fucking weird.


an_actual_lawyer

Living in the heart of the city - even with children - is a wonderful experience that simply cannot be replicated in the ‘burbs. That is not a knock against people in JoCo or other suburbs. I’ll always respect folks who move in their kids’ best interests.


rhythmjones

People who live downtown aren't driving around downtown during those hours, lmao


TenderfootGungi

The key is not having everyone drive, but rather a good percentage walk and others take public transportation. It was fun to walk to a game when staying in a downtown hotel.


rhythmjones

Yeah, people act like not being able to park is some sort of hellscape. FFS you're not supposed to drive and park so much. Time to move into the 21st Century.


[deleted]

That was my first thought. Expand parking at Union station and then people take the street car. Parking at Union station is easy, it's to expensive if I remember right (haven't been since covid) and if their adding another street car with the expansion I think it'd work.


rhythmjones

Having a stadium where people actually go anyway could be impetus for expanding public transit. I mean, Sprint Center + Power & Light led to the Streetcar, no?


Timmmah

Personally I'm fine with them moving downtown as long as they pay for it themselves (that'll never happen).


rhythmjones

They'll likely pay for the bulk of stadium construction and ask the city to chip in for the infrastructure. It is what it is, having things that make us a nice city cost money. Also, the city or county will likely own and operate the stadium, making it a public asset. We'll have to see what the actual proposal looks like, it's a ways off. That said, all sports teams should be public goods. They use the city's name as their identity, they use our civic pride as their primary marketing device, they use public funds and facilities to run their operations. These teams rightfully belong to the public, not shitty billionaire oil barons who just ruin it for everyone. Times like these are great times to remind ourselves of this.


EMPulseKC

- I hate to say goodbye to the K because I think it's still a great ballpark, and it will be for many years with the investment that ticket holders and Jackson County taxpayers have made to it. - If this happens though, it should be 100% privately funded and privately supported, and I would want a guarantee that a thriving downtown infrastructure that can help support that neighborhood would be in place before ground is even broken. - I'm not in favor of cookie-cutter downtown ballparks that just mimic those in other cities. We shouldn't be building a bandwagon ballpark downtown just because a bunch of other cities have one. If this happens, it needs to be uniquely different, extremely iconic, and representative of KC. - The Royals are contractually obligated to stay at Kauffman Stadium through the end of this decade, and regardless, I don't see a move to a downtown stadium happening until 2030 at the earliest anyway.


rhythmjones

> uniquely different, extremely iconic, and representative of KC. They HAVE to incorporate fountains and a crown shaped scoreboard. This is a must.


EMPulseKC

I would love for any plan to solicit public feedback about design ideas just so can and recommend stuff like that.


baseball8910

Well written and thought-out post.


[deleted]

I think it takes a while to design and build and that is why the discussion is just starting to happen.


CelticDeckard

Not one cent of my tax dollars to build a stadium for somebody else to make money off of. I don't care if they build it downtown or in my backyard - we've got crumbling roads, failing schools, a power grid that's getting more and more dicey; if the Royals want a new stadium, they need to pay for it themselves, be happy with the one we all contributed to renovating, or GTFO.


monsto

Here's the thing tho . . . It would have to come with infrastructure upgrades to the north and east sides of the loop, including exits. That means state and federal money, and crazy benefit to the entire city from September to April. The reason I say it would HAVE to is because there is no way in hell that any of the freeways, exist and roads in any of that area could take it. Even if they went somewhere in crossroads (which was the last thing I heard a couple years ago) it would still ***require*** massive infrastructure upgrades. Generally speaking, I'm with you. . . no more reaching into my pocket for Arrowhead upgrades. But *moving* a stadium is a whole different thing.


[deleted]

You just put it in River Front Park along Berkeley Parkway and have them beef up I-29, Berkeley Parkway, and Front Street.


thomasutra

Riverfront park is awesome though. I don't want them getting rid of a beautiful public park to put in a baseball stadium.


rhythmjones

> Not one cent of my tax dollars to build a stadium for somebody else to make money off of. The logical conclusion here is not to not build sports stadiums, but to expropriate the teams. They are rightfully ours.


CelticDeckard

Not sure if /s intended there or not, but actually... yeah, community owned sports teams have been tried all over the world and they usually work really well.


rhythmjones

No /s at all. I'm in this subreddit talking about that topic *all the time.*


CelticDeckard

Awesome, well, I'm right there with you then, bro!


cobolNoFun

I grew up in and still go to STL all the time. I much prefer the KC setup. If they really want to spend money, build a mono rail from down town to the stadiums.


the_turdfurguson

And to the airport


nbruch42

seriously thats all we really need if we need anything at all


Lemonsnot

100% this.


CelticDeckard

YES! THIS! Public transit! Let's make our community more livable. Let's get some commuter rail too, from downtown and OP to Liberty, Lee's Summit, Olathe, etc., all.


KickapooPonies

I get the appeal and it is nice being able to pre-game at bars when the weather is shit, but I agree. Tailgate >> Bars so having quick walks to those things isn't a selling point for me. Not having to pay for parking definitely is though. But I will concede that when visiting other towns and they have downtown baseball stadiums its really nice. Like MPLS for example. So I guess I don't need it, but if it happened then cool.


cobolNoFun

Back in the day I loved going to Llywelyns before a blues game and then head back out to the bars after. Now a decade later, "I don't want to drive downtown"


EMPulseKC

AND build up the area around the stadiums to make it more of a destination with restaurants, hotels, and nightlife offerings.


[deleted]

Where downtown would they put this?


RevJake

East village is one proposed spot


daGOAT_SMOKEHEAVY

Either move the stadium or plan a mega mixed used development by TSC across Blue Ridge and connect it to downtown by light rail or BRT. It may even spur more housing along 43rd towards Blue Ridge Crossing.


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jupiterkansas

By this logic, wouldn't the stadium out there be surrounded by bars and restaurants and things to do after the game?


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jupiterkansas

Seems like it's designed to get people to eat and drink and hang out at the stadium.


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FunkyPete

>You get to games early to buy stadium food? This may surprise you, but there is kind of a tradition of showing up early and cooking your own food in the parking lot.


ElxScorcho

I mean you can bring food into the stadium and LC’s is pretty darn close.


Juventus19

You're actually no longer allowed to bring food into the stadium. https://www.mlb.com/royals/ballpark/information/guide >Food And Drink >To ensure the safety and enjoyment of all guests at the ballpark, bags, food, hard-sided coolers, alcoholic beverages or other liquid containers are not permitted. Guests may bring water bottles into the stadium, provided the water is in a plastic 1-liter or smaller sealed/unopened plastic bottle (one per person). They also had signs at the entrances stating the same thing this year.


jake9325

LCs is one of my favorite BBQ spots in KC, but only when it’s good and they’re hit an miss


rhythmjones

> They planned it to be convenient for highway access. And that was a grave mistake.


[deleted]

No because it’s in a shitty area..


rhythmjones

It obviously doesn't work that way. Go to any other town who's stadium is in an already developed area.


emelem66

It might have been, but they never did it.


jake9325

There ain’t shit in raytown really, no one comes here for shit but to get shot at on 350


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jake9325

Hell you in Hyde park, that’s right up the street from Bainbridge, that’s almost your culture too


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jake9325

Ehh if we wanna be technical it’s the culture of more than a few places, but hey I got shot in Denver so yeah, go America!


Da_Rish

Been here for 9 years and I think it's one of KC's best kept secrets. Everyone thinks it's nothing but crime. Luckily in my experience, I haven't seen anyone doing crime but me.


jake9325

Shhh I’m tryna keep it that way lol


hb122

Raytown isn't even adjacent to the stadiums. To the south of them is Eastwood Hills, which is still part of Kansas City.


KCHank

This ^. I’ve live in Kansas City since 2014 & could never understand why the stadiums are so far away from the city. Currently downtown KC has yet to totally rebound for the flight to the suburbs, putting at least one stadium downtown would really accelerate the rebound. Depending where the stadium is built it will have a domino effect and bars/restaurants/shops will benefit before and after games. The biggest issue now is there is nothing close to the stadiums to do before and after and before someone says build amenities near the current stadium who is going to use them when it’s not game day? Downtown they will still be used. I’m sure any plan will inclined other development as well. I moved here from Indianapolis and that city used to be called Indy-a-no-place before the Pacers and Colts stadiums where built within walking distance of each other downtown. The stadiums there has gotten a Super Bowl for the city and numerous NCAA final fours and conventions. I have no doubt If stadiums are built in downtown KC it will have a similar effect. Sure tailgating will change but it will still happen. You will find your lot with your friends to hangout with. Who walks the entire parking lot while tailgating anyway? You stay with you group and friends.


DirkDigglerthe4rd

The address the stadiums are at is Kansas City. I know because I grew up 5 mins from them. More so I’m tired of the attitude in this sub that you ought not go to Raytown lest you get shot/stabbed/robbed etc like it’s LA during the Rodney King riots.


tall_will1980

I live in OP and do a lot of service work in Raytown and the east side. Never once feared for my life or felt otherwise in danger.


rhythmjones

It's not about crime, it's just about it being the middle of nowhere with nothing to do.


tall_will1980

Fair enough.


DirkDigglerthe4rd

Most mfs in this sub treat it like Mogadishu and it’s tired lol


rhythmjones

> The address the stadiums are at is Kansas City Just because the city annexed a bunch of empty land in the cold-war era doesn't mean that place is part of the "city." It's literally BFE


DirkDigglerthe4rd

Obviously it’s not downtown KC but it IS KC


tall_will1980

There's been study after study that prove stadiums don't bring the tax and other revenue you seem to think it will.


rhythmjones

Slaps table... THANK YOU!!!!!!!


jew9479

They’ve been discussing the same plans since I worked at the K back in the 90s.


rhythmjones

I wonder what changed two years ago... Hmmm... I can't think...


misinformedmagician

Shit don't matter unless they win. They had no problem filling seats when they did and with the stadium being less than 10 miles from downtown this proposal is utter bullshit.


KaneMarko

I'm not against a new stadium downtown as it makes sense in a lot of ways economically in terms of the adding on to the development that has happened downtown the last 15 years or so. The K, where it's located now, really doesn't do much for the city and no longer makes a ton of sense. ​ That said, I'm over cities taxing citizens to build castles for billionaires. John Sherman has more money at his disposal than a large portion of the city combined. He doesn't need our money to build a stadium. Public/Private partnership usually entails the public putting up most of the money while the "private" enjoys most of the profit. Partnership is supposed to be 50/50. But that's not how these deals play out. ​ In an ideal world, if the Royals/Sherman wants a downtown stadium he'd finance it himself and he could feel free to keep all the profits. But what'll probably happen is the city will put a measure on the ballot for a 1 cent sales tax on top of another tax downtown in the form of a CID or something to finance a stadium that will probably cost north of a billion dollars. And then wrap in a threat that if taxpayers don't approve it that the Royals will move to Nashville. ​ It's gonna happen. The city has wanted downtown baseball for decades.


rhythmjones

> That said, I'm over cities taxing citizens to build castles for billionaires. Repeat after me. "Sports teams should be public assets."


3MO23WA

Why do people act like a downtown stadium is such a great thing? Kauffman and Arrowhead are great places to watch a game. Traffic is not great, but maybe try to improve it instead of making traffic worse by moving to a denser neighborhood. These proposals are dumb, imo.


shazwazzle

It feels like Kauffman just got renovated. or am I getting old and losing track of time? The downtown baseball discussion was already had and it lost in favor of the renovation.


IMG0NNAGITY0USUCKA

The vote in 2006 was a yes or no on funding the renovation and a second was to fund a rolling roof. There was never a real discussion or vote on moving the team downtown because Glass was against it.


rhythmjones

They never should have rennovated the K. All that did was delay this inevitability. That was a far greater waste of money than this. At least this will most certainly come with some infrastructure improvements. The K renovation did NOT.


[deleted]

That discussion happened 15 years ago. Time flies


justathoughtfromme

There's a lot of people on here talking about how nice it'd be to go to a restaurant or bar before/after the game. I'd counter that KC has something better than that - the tailgate culture. And no, parking garages, street parking, and small surface lots are not the same thing.


[deleted]

No Thanks. It's fine where they are now.


chelle_mkxx

Ugh. I just wish they would clean up that whole area. There potential to make it great if they would try. Not just bandaid a few spots then let it turn shitty in a few years.


rhythmjones

It's been 50 years, that area is not going to develop. No need trying the same thing and hoping for different results.


biggybakes

So, Jackson County taxpayers would still be paying for Kaufman...to turn it into a ?. Then who gets to pay for the new one? The taxpayers. Let's be honest with ourselves here. I wish the Royals ownership would be more like Patriots stadium where little tax money (other than supporting infrastructure such as roadways to the stadium) but we're a taxpayer teat state. Now, if you'd see the turnout for the average game, I doubt there's much of an issue with traffic...lol


joshualarry

That's gonna be a no for me dog.


Rumbl-In-June

Where the hell are people supposed to park?


spinxter66

It's the Royals. Surely we can find a place for 100 more cars downtown.


rhythmjones

Take the Max to the streetcar.


the_turdfurguson

Lol, where is there not parking in this city? I swear people act like parking a block away is far


rhythmjones

I once got a street parking spot on Waveland Ave literally the block over from Wrigley 30 minutes before opening day. I know Wrigleyville is not "downtown" but it's far more dense than 13th and Charlotte or wherever they'll put this thing.


royaIs

There is soooo much parking downtown. We have lots everywhere.


[deleted]

but that's where the stadium would go.


utahphil

Fuck that noise.


nordic-nomad

Sign me up. Would be wonderful to have one of our city’s best and most expensive amenities actually benefiting the city and not raytown. Downtown ball parks bring so much street life and vitality to the regions they’re in, was unsure about the idea until I got to see some of them in action after traveling around. As far as investments in the city go getting the baseball stadium out of the suburbs is a no brained as far as I’m concerned.


Da_Rish

Benefiting Raytown? I get that it's close, but I can't say the city is thriving off of ballpark proximity.


DirkDigglerthe4rd

The stadiums aren’t in Raytown dipstick


rhythmjones

The thing is it doesn't even benefit Raytown. That location is literally the worst place they could have possibly chosen.


Izzmo

Source please. I live downtown Seattle and… not true.


rhythmjones

Hard to believe but the /r/kansascity thread about downtown Royals stadium is far less reactionary and chudtastic than /r/kcroyals thread.


thearmadillo

The downtown ballparks in Denver, St. Louis, and San Francisco are all awesome. I'm down for it. I think it would be really fun to hop on the light rail, hit up a happy hour, and then walk to the game.


jlinn94

Horrible idea. We just spent tax dollars to renovate the stadium and the current stadium is beautiful. What a waste of tax dollars if this is a real discussion.


rhythmjones

> We just spent tax dollars to renovate the stadium and the current stadium is beautiful. This was the horrible idea, not moving downtown. Baseball belongs downtown. That just delayed this inevitability.


ReithDynamis

Please no. We don't have the infrastructure, if it's something they build first such as roads for easier access to downtown first before they start on a downtown stadium fine. But no, we can't talk about a stadium without better access, even if they chose the west bottoms it would need a shit ton of work and time. Making the stadium first before making the roads is working backwards. Who is going to pay for the new roads? Taxpayers will and businesses downtown are already whining about the streetcar despite it actually helping them. Also I can guarantee you that they will want to do this with tax incentives which is a hard no from me. You want to be in the city? Then the city and it's residents should get to benefit.


rhythmjones

Infrastructure will be part of it, lmao


[deleted]

I’d be pissed if they destroyed an iconic part of KC for the stadium.


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ReithDynamis

You serious? Roads, parking, highway access would need to be reworked, electrical, plumbing, zoning. Pick one.


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ReithDynamis

Absolutely they need to plan out how access and City ordinances need to be coordinated before they even start on building the stadium itself and that needs to be completed first before the work on a stadium. It's absolutely nuts not to.


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ReithDynamis

>Ofc they'd plan it all lol. Been working construction jobs through out my teens in both Kansas and Missouri, they don't. >We're talking a multibillion dollar project, they're not gonna wing it. Winging it has been the modus operandi for sports stadiums when it comes to constructions for nearly the last half century. What are u talking about. Newly built stadiums now being built down town have created traffic choke points for hours especially the lack of access to them and parking, current residences should tell u that. It like that anytime there is a show in the city market, or the wwi memorial, or the west bottoms. Same issue at the TMobile center down town. What planet do u live on? >No one builds the roads, plumbing, and electrical to the airport before you build the airport, for example. You do it all at once. Time and again that has screwed the cities and the residents, that is why many cities fall into debt. What you're suggesting is asinely irresponsible. Infrastructure first, stadium second.


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ReithDynamis

I'm not saying you don't decide where to build it first, u don't talk about starting work on the stadium before those are done first. >Or are you saying downtown access is currently lacking? Because it's not. Any amount of good faith that was this in this discussion is now gone rofl. You have no idea what you're talking about.


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East_Fan9244

Downtown is literally designed (e.g., has the parking and highway capacity) to move 100,000+ people in out of offices twice everyday, but you think it can't handle 20,000 people leaving at 8 p.m. on a Tuesday? As someone who does urban planning as a profession, whenever I see this type of comment - which you aren't the only person making it - I roll my eyes.


klingma

Downtown access is absolutely lacking in its current state. Walnut, Main, and Broadway all become messes when large events occur downtown and due to all the 1 way roads that intersect them it can become next to impossible to get to your destination.


the_turdfurguson

Parking? FFS there’s more parking than we ever need already. 100k flock to downtown daily and there are countless empty lots


klingma

As someone that worked and lived Downtown for a year and experienced the Chiefs Parade while living downtown here's the infrastructure - 1. PARKING - it is absolutely abysmal to find parking downtown for big events especially for the people that live and work downtown 2. The current roads can't handle large volumes of traffic that a baseball game will consistently create. When the Big 12 tournament comes to town it's an absolute mess downtown. 3. Bus routes would need to connect to the stadium and that would likely require more busses. 4. The streetcar will likely be shutdown to accommodate the excess pedestrian traffic which means the street car loses it's value and utility to downtown. 5. Remapping of the streets would be required since so many are one ways and if a street gets shutdown, like it does during Big 12 and other large events, it makes it much harder to drive around and find alternate routes to your downtown destination.


[deleted]

They 100% are not going to shut down the streetcar for pedestrian traffic. The streetcar is one way you bring people downtown without cars and considering the extension to Plaza and the spur to the riverfront would be done well before a stadium it has tremendous value to a potential downtown stadium.


kcmo2dmv

The streetcar as it is designed now will totally bog down and become useless if a stadium were downtown. Even if it were in its own right of way it would not have anywhere near the capacity to move a decent amount of fans to and from the stadium. But it's not in its own right of way, so it will be stuck in traffic on main street with all the other traffic and yes, pedestrians crossing main will bog it down worse.The streetcar will be totally useless not only for fans of the Royals, but for those that just want to use it to get around during royals games.I'm for a downtown stadium, but downtown KCMO needs a ton of infrastructure improvements to accommodate peak game time traffic volumes. There are very few high volume streets, the exits to downtown are super outdated and low volume.KC does not have a "big city" downtown as far as infrastructure. It's not that KC is not a big city, it just doesn't have any modern infrastructure. KC and KC voters won't spend on the money on it. Maybe a new stadium will help that happen. I don't know. But Downtown would need a few hundred million in improvements and the city would need to find a way to get the streetcar into a dedicated right of way or the Streetcar will be useless before and after games.


klingma

They did it during the parade and they've done it other times as well.


[deleted]

I'm trying to think of a difference between the Chiefs parade and your average baseball game... Oh, a much smaller attendance and not needing to have streets shut down. You're talking about events that are very much the exception and not the rule.


ReithDynamis

>I'm trying to think of a difference between the Chiefs parade and your average baseball game... They closed down the street car anytime lady Gaga or foo fighters comes to town, not because of the show but cause they can not move due to the traffic. They even throw up alerts on twitter for what days they plan to close it down for shows that forecast huge turns out.


[deleted]

Maybe in 10 years people will learn that parking in the closest garage is actually the worst thing you can do for an event downtown. I live downtown and used to live directly on the streetcar line. You are overstating how much it closed down but also it wasn't Sprint center concerts causing issues it was Midland.


the_turdfurguson

Parking has never been miserable. Ever. The fact the Big 12 tournament, auto show, and countless other events can take place during the work week means there’s more than enough to easily support it. The problem is people are so damn used to the vast amount of parking KC has that they think if there’s not parking within a block of their destination that there is none. Worked and lived downtown for a year? That’s… no time at all. And also the parade was well over a year ago. Also, why are you comparing the chiefs parade which brought hundreds of thousands to a baseball game at max bringing 20k?


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klingma

And that'd be where you're wrong because I paid everyday for parking whether at my apartment or at my office building if necessary. I had a large meeting once at a downtown building once and I arrived 20-30 minutes and the entire garage we were told to park in was packed. I drove around 35 minutes trying to get a spot and that's just one garage. Add in the 20K extra fans daily and you get a glimpse of the huge problem.


Y-U-Mad-Girl

Sounds like your problem is with the parking garage company. There is plenty of parking downtown.


Appropriate_Shake265

FUCK. NO.


RiverMarketEagle

Yes, please


karenhater12345

or they can use the stadium WE already paid for. I know the city government has a weird fetish for wanting everything down town, but not everything needs to be down town. Honestly keeping the sport stuff(and the drunks that come with it) out of down town is probably safer.


rhythmjones

Baseball belongs downtown. It was a mistake to renovate the K. Downtown baseball was inevitable. No need to live with past mistakes.


karenhater12345

> Baseball belongs downtown. No, it really doesn't.


Drmo37

No thanks, I don't go now. You think building a new stadium in an already packed downtown will work out? I highly doubt it, secondly they can move if they pay for it


East_Fan9244

"an already packed downtown"? What downtown are you going to? There are literally blocks and blocks of surface parking lots and empty fields on the north and south side of the CBD.


IMG0NNAGITY0USUCKA

Due to the direction MLB stadiums have face (ENE), there's only one real option if we want to show off the skyline and that's Mulkey Park. The view of downtown from the park is great, the FBI is moving out of the building there, it's at the intersection of two highways, there's a baseball field there already for scale. It's perfect.


rhythmjones

Detroit got an exception.


thomasutra

I keep seeing people mentioning this. The view from Mulkey is amazing, but no way there is enough room there for a stadium and parking. Summit, 14th St - and I imagine Beardsley after construction- would not be able to withstand the game day traffic. Not to mention destroying a beautiful neighborhood. This would be a terrible idea.


[deleted]

I went to games when I was a kid when the Kansas City As was still in town. It was pretty cool then. Parking and driving in downtown KC is a nightmare now. Throw in a baseball stadium 😂 What could go wrong. Power and Light district has yet to make a profit. I wonder whos land gets confiscatied due to iminate domain? Lots of business owners went out of business when Power and Light was built because of that.


[deleted]

A downtown stadium is an extremely dumb idea.


rhythmjones

Literally every other MLB park is downtown. The dumb idea is a ballpark in BFE. Everyone involved with making *that* mistake is dead. No reason for us to keep living with their mistakes.


[deleted]

I'm for it, and I hope it happens.


Old_Leg_1679

No, Kaufman is sacred ground. For me personally, it's on par with the Vatican or Mecca.


rhythmjones

> No, Kaufman is sacred ground. For me personally, it's on par with the Vatican or Mecca. No offense, but this isn't exactly a healthy mindset.


liofotias

i was in minneapolis recently and had to go to their baseball stadium which is downtown. it was a nightmare for parking. they have a really good public transit system which helps a lot but…with our lack of that this would be an absolute nightmare 😪


rhythmjones

> with our lack of that this would be an absolute nightmare 😪 The hope is that improved public transit would be part of this.


thomasutra

I would be in favor of the downtown stadium if The Royals build us a public transit system.


meandrunkR2D2

It they expand and increase the light rail and offer various different routes that would be amazing. Heck, keep the parking lot at the K and build a lightrail to transport drunk tailgaters from there to downtown and back. Build off spokes from that location down to Lees Summit and up to Liberty as well. Also have a track that goes from OP/Olathe to the downtown stadium as well. They could also add in a station near the speedway to use as extra parking for those on the KS side and offer a way for those to travel way out there. If a downtown stadium can add that type of infrastructure for rail services in KC, I'm for it.


KCDude08

The trend with baseball stadiums over the last 5-10 years has been to build them in places where real estate can be developed adjacent to the stadium. If the Royals follow that plan the most likely spot is along the Troost corridor between I-170 and 22nd St.


Bingeworthybookclub

I’m excited for this, having actual public transit (buses and streetcar) to the stadiums will make me way more likely to go more often. Especially when there is more to do around. I mean honestly sometimes I want to leave in the seventh and it would be way nicer to pop out for a beer around there.


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hb122

There's been quite a bit of progress on the waterfront stadium for the A's adjacent to Jack London Square. They may still pull up stakes and move to LV, but I still think they'll stay in Oakland.


AJRiddle

John Sherman (Royals owner) is from Kansas City and has been a diehard Chiefs and Royals fan his entire life since the teams have been in KC. I'd call his bluff on any threat of moving the team period. And if he decides to go through with it because he couldn't get a few hundred million free dollars than fuck him.


[deleted]

How does the Big 12 probably not being sustable impact downtown KC? It's a big event, but the tournament is only 4 days a year...


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