Still seemingly undecided between the East Village and Clay County, the Royals released renderings of what their "ballpark village" could look like at both sites. They also provided some fuzzy math.
Don't necessarily disagree with any of this but ... For two decades, I lived in the largest metropolitan region in the country without a major league sports team (in any major sport). KC is incredibly lucky to have both the Chiefs and the Royals. It changes the overall dynamic and vibrancy of the region in immeasurable ways. This isn't just about bottom line dollars and cents. I'm not saying just give teams whatever handouts they ask for. I am saying that life on the other side of the MLB/NFL haves and have nots fence is definitely not greener, in ways that can't be punched into a calculator.
KCMO and Jackson County taxpayers already funded an NBA/NHL-ready arena in downtown KC, and it has its own mixed-use entertainment district!!!
It remains without a tenant largely because credible economic models show that the KC metro economy can support about 1.5 pro sports franchises at a healthy level of corporate sponsorship and entertainment dollars. The local economy isn't growing like we all want to believe, and the Chiefs will always be 1A and 1B in KC, but if you subtract the Royals, give the city a few years to breathe, you'll have a head start on something that would be far more fiscally responsible and sustainable.
Oh, and yeah, KC is already spending >$20MM annually to subsidize the operating losses on that downtown district..... which to boot is cannibalizing restaurants/bars/shops elsewhere in the city, including but not limited to the Plaza. And don't get me started on city services and quality of life.
I will be very sad if the Royals ultimately leave, but it's bordering on bad faith to act like we can't put numbers to the costs and benefits. The guys asking for public cash sure are leaving no stone unturned, and no lever unpressed to shift risk on to taxpayers.
You hit it with your fourth paragraph. The income realized isn’t “new” or “additional” to the region. Most of it is reallocated. And the subsidies to float the new development takes from other services.
It’s helpful to the city in projecting an image. On the ground, it’s often a different story.
Not sure building an arena w/out a team to fill it is necessarily apples to apples here. Regardless, not a question of whether we can or cannot put numbers on the costs/benefits. Of course there are limits, and the owner-generated forecasts aren't to be trusted. But there is an intrinsic value to having the team, and if you don't think that's true go live for a decade or so in a place that doesn't have one. That doesn't mean city leaders shouldn't be dealing w/ real issues involving public services and cannibalizing/displacing existing businesses, etc, etc. Just means that at least some part of the calculus (how much clearly open for debate) should involve that intangible element.
You're right: the speculative deal to build the Sprint Center w/o securing a tenant - in "partnership" with a promoter who ended up in federal prison soon after - was not the same thing.
An indoor arena like T-Mobile is a far more flexible and useful civic asset than a baseball stadium. And it was in a location that at least had potential to be an amenity that'd draw corporate relocations to downtown.
Kansas City is fortunate to have both MLB and NFL franchises. Along with MLS and NWSL. With baseball in particular, there’s something about being able to say you’re a major league city. That’s why leaders pushed so hard for expansion when the A’s left after ‘67.
But there are now multiple teams rattling the “relocation” saber. I’m not sure that’s an option even if the voters in either county deny the Royals. Governments also have a way of working around the ballot box when it comes to subsidizing professional sports teams. This could be a long road.
Yeah, when you look at some of the crap that goes on in the KC area - as we speak there's a hearing on tax subsidies for a private airport parking facility to compete with public-owned assets (!) - it's very easy to see this getting messy. I'm just waiting for the port and transit development crews to make their play, too. It's one of the downsides of suburban sprawl: more cities/counties = more pockets to pick.
Nobody who's followed Clay County politics closely in the past decade is surprised at the tomfoolery already underway to try and make the NKC bid look real. And that's coming AFTER a supposed 'new day' with a re-constituted county commission supposedly designed to resist the sort of development shenanigans of the Gene Owen era. Little shock that JE Dunn hired one of the new commissioners a month ago.
Take a look at the downtown render. If Billionaire John thinks that BWJ and Brady are going to be here when the new park opens, he needs to get out the checkbook now. Their prices go up every single game.
Alas, I love the K but also like new parks, so I’m down.
Here are a few thoughts that stood out to me from yesterday's PR:
I’ll only invest more in the team if you pay for a new stadium.” - Billionaire John
“We can’t build it without your money.” - Billionaire John
So what’s in it for county residents? Tix that are a little cheaper (again?)
“Construction of this new ballpark district could create 20,000 jobs.” (Jobs that people would otherwise be working elsewhere. So, it’s a transference, not a creation of jobs, income, or money.)
Plus, good luck to the people and businesses who live or operate in the area. They’ll either clear you out or raise rents/taxes to encourage you to move.
Sherman might as well show up in a top hat and tails. At least it'd feel more authentic than this bumbling effort to pretend this deal won't be slanted hopelessly in favor of ownership and include zero true protections for taxpayers or those displaced by the project.
Here's an idea for a true community benefit:
Give the public a 5-10% profits interest if Sherman or his heirs sell the team any time in the next 50 years.
And get the damn team on TV so all fans can watch them.
It's telling that owners are unwilling to play hardball with their private equity pals while they continue to squeeze taxpayers.
Anyone familiar with the leveraged debt game could see that Diamond never had a chance. MLB owners should have been buying up debt at a discount from the jump, but that'd possibly cost them a golf invite or two.
Partnership implies direct equity or other specific, tangible consideration flowing both ways.
It's entirely reasonable for the city/county to receive a profits interest. That doesn't have an impact on annual cash flow, but does ensure that the city shares in the eventual wealth bonanza that is the reason modern day robber barons buy pro sports franchises.
I dare them to claim it can't be done, either. I've got a lot going on, and I can't be on record in this debate, but I am already tempted to dig for proof certain key individuals might have used this deal structure in a prior business venture.....
Mr. B, Completely agree that NKC is being played. For one thing, I don't see a whole lot of "under-served" folks, or Johnson County snobs, deigning to do a whole lot of trekking north of the river.
For all we know, the Royals in 2028 could be just as pathetic as they are now. Also, I despise the term "under-served." Haven't heard anything that patronizing in quite a while. Thank you for a great piece, delivered with your usual inimitable style.
Thanks, Terry. I figure the team will see a modest attendance bump once the move is definitely announced, no matter the record. It will spike the final year they’re at The K. Then, attendance will be up for the new yard for the first couple of years. After the shine wears off, it’s just another location. If they put it someplace central to the metro, it will do better than if they drop it someplace even a few miles away from the population center.
Well said Craig.
Thanks, Eric! I appreciate that.
Don't necessarily disagree with any of this but ... For two decades, I lived in the largest metropolitan region in the country without a major league sports team (in any major sport). KC is incredibly lucky to have both the Chiefs and the Royals. It changes the overall dynamic and vibrancy of the region in immeasurable ways. This isn't just about bottom line dollars and cents. I'm not saying just give teams whatever handouts they ask for. I am saying that life on the other side of the MLB/NFL haves and have nots fence is definitely not greener, in ways that can't be punched into a calculator.
I have good news for you...
KCMO and Jackson County taxpayers already funded an NBA/NHL-ready arena in downtown KC, and it has its own mixed-use entertainment district!!!
It remains without a tenant largely because credible economic models show that the KC metro economy can support about 1.5 pro sports franchises at a healthy level of corporate sponsorship and entertainment dollars. The local economy isn't growing like we all want to believe, and the Chiefs will always be 1A and 1B in KC, but if you subtract the Royals, give the city a few years to breathe, you'll have a head start on something that would be far more fiscally responsible and sustainable.
Oh, and yeah, KC is already spending >$20MM annually to subsidize the operating losses on that downtown district..... which to boot is cannibalizing restaurants/bars/shops elsewhere in the city, including but not limited to the Plaza. And don't get me started on city services and quality of life.
I will be very sad if the Royals ultimately leave, but it's bordering on bad faith to act like we can't put numbers to the costs and benefits. The guys asking for public cash sure are leaving no stone unturned, and no lever unpressed to shift risk on to taxpayers.
You hit it with your fourth paragraph. The income realized isn’t “new” or “additional” to the region. Most of it is reallocated. And the subsidies to float the new development takes from other services.
It’s helpful to the city in projecting an image. On the ground, it’s often a different story.
Not sure building an arena w/out a team to fill it is necessarily apples to apples here. Regardless, not a question of whether we can or cannot put numbers on the costs/benefits. Of course there are limits, and the owner-generated forecasts aren't to be trusted. But there is an intrinsic value to having the team, and if you don't think that's true go live for a decade or so in a place that doesn't have one. That doesn't mean city leaders shouldn't be dealing w/ real issues involving public services and cannibalizing/displacing existing businesses, etc, etc. Just means that at least some part of the calculus (how much clearly open for debate) should involve that intangible element.
You're right: the speculative deal to build the Sprint Center w/o securing a tenant - in "partnership" with a promoter who ended up in federal prison soon after - was not the same thing.
An indoor arena like T-Mobile is a far more flexible and useful civic asset than a baseball stadium. And it was in a location that at least had potential to be an amenity that'd draw corporate relocations to downtown.
Kansas City is fortunate to have both MLB and NFL franchises. Along with MLS and NWSL. With baseball in particular, there’s something about being able to say you’re a major league city. That’s why leaders pushed so hard for expansion when the A’s left after ‘67.
But there are now multiple teams rattling the “relocation” saber. I’m not sure that’s an option even if the voters in either county deny the Royals. Governments also have a way of working around the ballot box when it comes to subsidizing professional sports teams. This could be a long road.
Yeah, when you look at some of the crap that goes on in the KC area - as we speak there's a hearing on tax subsidies for a private airport parking facility to compete with public-owned assets (!) - it's very easy to see this getting messy. I'm just waiting for the port and transit development crews to make their play, too. It's one of the downsides of suburban sprawl: more cities/counties = more pockets to pick.
Nobody who's followed Clay County politics closely in the past decade is surprised at the tomfoolery already underway to try and make the NKC bid look real. And that's coming AFTER a supposed 'new day' with a re-constituted county commission supposedly designed to resist the sort of development shenanigans of the Gene Owen era. Little shock that JE Dunn hired one of the new commissioners a month ago.
source: https://twitter.com/dylan_pyles/status/1694179107704103131
Take a look at the downtown render. If Billionaire John thinks that BWJ and Brady are going to be here when the new park opens, he needs to get out the checkbook now. Their prices go up every single game.
Alas, I love the K but also like new parks, so I’m down.
Here are a few thoughts that stood out to me from yesterday's PR:
I’ll only invest more in the team if you pay for a new stadium.” - Billionaire John
“We can’t build it without your money.” - Billionaire John
So what’s in it for county residents? Tix that are a little cheaper (again?)
“Construction of this new ballpark district could create 20,000 jobs.” (Jobs that people would otherwise be working elsewhere. So, it’s a transference, not a creation of jobs, income, or money.)
Plus, good luck to the people and businesses who live or operate in the area. They’ll either clear you out or raise rents/taxes to encourage you to move.
Sherman might as well show up in a top hat and tails. At least it'd feel more authentic than this bumbling effort to pretend this deal won't be slanted hopelessly in favor of ownership and include zero true protections for taxpayers or those displaced by the project.
Here's an idea for a true community benefit:
Give the public a 5-10% profits interest if Sherman or his heirs sell the team any time in the next 50 years.
And get the damn team on TV so all fans can watch them.
amen, brother
TV issue is a joke, but obviously that's an MLB problem, not just Royals.
It's telling that owners are unwilling to play hardball with their private equity pals while they continue to squeeze taxpayers.
Anyone familiar with the leveraged debt game could see that Diamond never had a chance. MLB owners should have been buying up debt at a discount from the jump, but that'd possibly cost them a golf invite or two.
I didn’t touch on this, but the new buzzword is “partnership” as justification for public funds. It’s cynical as hell.
Partnership implies direct equity or other specific, tangible consideration flowing both ways.
It's entirely reasonable for the city/county to receive a profits interest. That doesn't have an impact on annual cash flow, but does ensure that the city shares in the eventual wealth bonanza that is the reason modern day robber barons buy pro sports franchises.
I dare them to claim it can't be done, either. I've got a lot going on, and I can't be on record in this debate, but I am already tempted to dig for proof certain key individuals might have used this deal structure in a prior business venture.....
Yep. Cheaper tickets don’t equal a partnership. This is a holdup, just like the majority of stadium deals with “poor” billionaires.
Can’t wait to see the level of depth Field of Schemes takes this too.
It has hosted some decent concerts.
Mr. B, Completely agree that NKC is being played. For one thing, I don't see a whole lot of "under-served" folks, or Johnson County snobs, deigning to do a whole lot of trekking north of the river.
For all we know, the Royals in 2028 could be just as pathetic as they are now. Also, I despise the term "under-served." Haven't heard anything that patronizing in quite a while. Thank you for a great piece, delivered with your usual inimitable style.
Thanks, Terry. I figure the team will see a modest attendance bump once the move is definitely announced, no matter the record. It will spike the final year they’re at The K. Then, attendance will be up for the new yard for the first couple of years. After the shine wears off, it’s just another location. If they put it someplace central to the metro, it will do better than if they drop it someplace even a few miles away from the population center.
Great analysis, Craig. Appreciate insight and facts, rare when it comes to corporate welfare grabs.
Put a winning team on the field!!! Then taxpayers MIGHT foot the bill for a new stadium!@