Great idea, other than Saul's arguing KC shouldn't develop any other areas because they already spent money on P/L.

If you're going to develop an area, develop the area around the K.

Here's an article from 2004


Kemper backs downtown ballpark

KEVIN COLLISON

Add another voice � a particularly prominent businessman this time � to those who believe a downtown ballpark would be a wise use of taxpayer dollars to keep the Royals here.

�Personally, I'd rather see a downtown ballpark than spend a lot of money refurbishing a ballpark at the Truman Sports Complex,� said R. Crosby Kemper III, CEO of UMB Bank.

�The ideal situation would be to do a smaller refurbishment of Kauffman (Stadium), extend the lease a little more and simultaneously land bank land in downtown and plan to build a new downtown stadium 10 years out. That makes sense to me rather than spend $177 million on a stadium renovation.�

Kemper, however, thinks a downtown ballpark idea probably will remain backstage while the Bistate II effort plays out. Bistate supporters continue to tweak their plan to make it more palatable to voters. Last week they proposed a quarter-cent sales tax that would last 12 to 15 years instead of 25 years. It would raise about $1 billion.

In the meantime, the estimated construction cost of renovating Arrowhead and Kauffman stadiums to meet the terms agreed to by the team owners and Jackson County officials to extend the leases has escalated to $180 million for each facility. Bistate is the chosen vehicle for financing those improvements.

While observing that it would have been better if the community had had an open debate before deciding how to respond to the needs of the Royals and Chiefs, Kemper said he understood why Jackson County Executive Katheryn Shields and county lawmakers took matters into their own hands.

�We've been playing with this a long time, and Katheryn Shields felt we needed to get off the dime,� he said. �The bistate thing is being run by people responding to the fact the county legislature has already made a deal. They've made the decision to go ahead and now are tweaking what's in or out.�

Meanwhile, Kemper said he and others have talked privately about their support for a downtown ballpark, and a quiet effort is under way to determine the feasibility of the idea.

�It is being looked at, but I don't know where (Royals owner) David Glass is,� he said. �Everyone agrees a ballpark should be downtown if we're going to spend that kind of money. The problem is, a process already is in place.

�Everybody is waiting to see what happens with bistate.�

In the past Kemper has said that Kansas City needs to be more focused on prioritizing its major endeavors. He strongly backs Julia Irene Kauffman's proposed performing arts center, which has yet to raise all of its estimated $300 million construction cost. He also was an early supporter of H&R Block Inc. coming downtown.

�We need a decision on what it is we want to support in the community,� Kemper said. �I think a downtown ballpark makes more sense than an arena for a lot of reasons.�

There are several locations where Kemper thinks a ballpark would be doable, including the north loop; the area east of Ilus W. Davis Park ; the Crossroads area; and the property being considered for an arena at 14th Street and Grand Boulevard, much of which is controlled by UMB.

Would UMB being willing to help with the 14th and Grand site?

�My position all along is we have a major piece of property there,� Kemper said. �If a good civic use is proposed, we'd be willing to work with developers.�

While Kemper likes the idea of a downtown ballpark, he takes with a grain of salt the spinoff benefits touted for any major sports facility.

�I don't believe that downtown stadiums or arenas, from a cultural and economic value, do much,� he said. �It's a symbolic value and a good one. ...If we need to spend a lot of money to keep a team here, we ought to do it downtown.�

On a related note, two weeks ago the idea of a smaller, �boutique� ballpark for downtown was suggested in this space by the architects at Heinlein Schrock Stearns. The firm said that for the roughly the same amount that is being proposed to renovate Kauffman Stadium, a 25,000- to 28,000 seat state-of-the-art ballpark could be built downtown.

They said the design would handle all but the largest crowds attending Royals games and for really big games temporary seating could accommodate 15,000 more fans. The ballpark would have all the revenue-generating amenities the Royals would need and offer an intimate setting unparalleled in major-league baseball.

A rough illustration of how their ballpark could be situated downtown, including where the temporary seating could be located, is included with today's column.

Heinlein Schrock is capable of some mega-ideas as well. The firm was selected last week by the New York Jets to be the sports design architect of its proposed $1.4 billion stadium in Manhattan. That is another feather in the cap of Kansas City's reputation as being the nation's sports architecture capital.

Yeah, think of all the white-collar walk-across-the-street stiffs they'd be getting if the park was next to Union Station.

Dude's all over the map.

Columbus Park with the Grand Slam Liquor Remy Martin mural as the backdrop.

Where would you put the haunted houses?

lmao. this place rules.

Wait, sorry, I meant "vitalize."

An eight year old article is irrelevant.

And the idea of knocking down Kemper Arena won't work. The plot of land isn't big enough, and you have potential flooding issues building in the West Bottoms. Plus highway access is a bitch.

That would be .6 miles from P&L. The walk to your car in the parking lot at Kauffman is every bit of that.

Just build it in sunny Olathe and be done with it.

It's amazing to watch. Typically I would be swearing like a sailor at him out of frustration from the lack of logic and common sense on display here. But this has me sitting here in a state of complete amusement.

Good call. Didn't realize the land was that tight until I looked at the map.

Highway access, parking and traffic would be a nightmare, and you're still nowhere near Saul's baby, P/L.

I say we build it in Minot, North Dakota, and just have one of those bullet trains take us back and forth. No more sweating your asses off in the summer heat! And yes, Saul, we'll build a Shark Bar there for somewhere to go. Maybe a Makers Mark for you fancy ****s.

It will happen eventually.

There really IS no open downtown location that is suitable. The Kauffman Center took the last big chunk of prime development. You could build down by the River Market, put the park next to the Missouri River, then watch it surf to New Orleans in the next big flood. But until that happens, think how entertaining it would be to see guys in canoes fish homers -and dead prostitutes- out of the muddy MO!