McDowell: Why The Chiefs Pursuit to Renovate Arrowhead Has Hit A Snag

[tk13]

We've been talking about this for a few weeks over in the Royals thread. It's been interesting to see how quiet the Chiefs have been while the Royals negotiate for a new stadium, and in the last couple weeks there's more and more smoke that the Chiefs and Royals staying in Jackson County is not a sure thing. Sam McDowell finally wrote about it. It's a very long column so I just picked some highlights. It's a good breakdown of the situation. It sounds like Kansas hasn't made any serious offers but they're the obvious alternative if Jackson County decides to punt, and it sounds like the Royals and Chiefs want answers soon.

https://www.kansascity.com/sports/sp...282553078.html

The Chiefs are quietly evaluating the need to pursue alternatives outside Jackson County as their push to negotiate a renewal of a county-wide sales tax has failed to launch substantive conversations, multiple sources told The Star. Well, it was quietly. You’re probably aware of the recent rhetoric, including from some local politicians, implying that the Chiefs already have one foot out the door — and are strutting toward Kansas, no less. That gasoline-on-the-fire message follows a worst-case-scenario playbook, not to mention a Kansas City tactic of pitting two states against each other for its prized assets. But this doesn’t paint an entirely accurate picture. The Chiefs have not engaged in serious conversations with outside parties about a move across the state line, sources told me, a sentiment confirmed to The Star’s Katie Bernard by Brianna Johnson, a spokeswoman for Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly. That doesn’t mean they won’t.

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The Royals started and initially drove the stadium conversation, not only publicly, but behind the scenes too. The Chiefs weren’t completely silent observers, but they appeared content to allow the Royals to negotiate a new lease with Jackson County and county executive Frank White, and then follow with what would ideally be a smoother and quicker conversation.

The latter has just simply not been the case. The former, waiting on the conclusion of Royals’ negotiations, has since changed. What’s been lost along the way is that the Chiefs, too, are interested in an April 2024 ballot measure, for reasons I’ll cover here. And as a Jan. 23 deadline to secure that ballot measure has neared, they ignited their own talks, separate from the Royals, earlier this fall. “We have met with Frank and the county attorneys in an introductory meeting,” Chiefs team president Mark Donovan said in a statement. “We shared that we would like to focus on extending the current 3/8th-cent sales tax. This partnership has served us well for over 50 years, and we look forward to working with them to enhance the amazing community asset that GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium has become.” Where do those talks stand now? “We have not heard back from the county,” Donovan said.

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The Chiefs have sought a 25-year renewal of the 3/8th-cent sales tax passed in 2006, as Donovan’s statement said, with no significant additions to the long-standing lease. That’s the path they are attempting to navigate, with a conclusion that would keep them at Arrowhead, a fan-favorite, for the next quarter-century. But in my discussions with an array of politicos, it’s evident to many that White does not believe the current lease agreement benefits Jackson County, which funds and manages the facilities but does not receive direct revenue from the stadiums. The deal is more complicated than the tax — for example, no one has raised a hand to pay for demolition of Kauffman Stadium if the Royals move, an expense that would total tens of millions of dollars.

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White is positioned at the center of this saga as the county executive who just so happens to be a member of the Royals Hall of Fame. But his lack of eagerness to extend the status quo is not an isolated view within the county, sources said. He has at least some support from the legislature, though there are varying opinions about the reach and depth of that support. And therefore it’s notable that others within the county government want to create a path for the Chiefs to circumvent White by securing backing from a majority of the legislators to extend the sales tax. There is doubt, however, about whether they would have enough support to override a potential veto from White, if it were to come to that.

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The Royals, who have had more frequent meetings with the county, have stated their preference to play downtown baseball sooner rather than later. Their recent focus has primarily been analyzing the logistics of the former Kansas City Star press building along the south loop, and they have started the process of creating renderings for the site, sources said. They’ve also publicly stated their target of an April ballot measure, which comes with that rapidly approaching Jan. 23 deadline. It’s a deadline that the Chiefs are targeting, too — with a more concrete plan, at least to date. I’ll put this out there before I continue: In the course of speaking with several people for this column, there are overwhelmingly more who classify an April ballot measure as a long-shot than those who expect the county and teams to reach an agreement before the mid-January date.

Read more at: https://www.kansascity.com/sports/sp...#storylink=cpy

[tk13]

Originally Posted by Chief Roundup

Would it be better for the Chiefs if the Royals were removed from the equation? I would think it certainly could be better and really should be better because of the disparity between the two franchise's situations and the drive to obtain wins and provide the best product for the tax payers and fans.

We discussed this over in the Royals thread but the thing is who knows how good the Chiefs will be for the life of these renovations. There's no way to know who's going to be doing what in the 2030s beyond. By the time these renovations come through or a new Arrowhead is built, Mahomes should be here but who knows about Kelce or Andy Reid or lots of other guys. It's like they call Lucas Oil the house that Peyton built but Manning only played like 3 or 4 years in that stadium.

[Pitt Gorilla]

Originally Posted by Titty Meat

Boy of all the things to criticize the governor over it would be that? Society is cooked.

It's literally the topic of the thread. I'm sure there are other more important things; I'm just not sure why anyone would be addressing them in this thread.

[Chief Roundup]

Originally Posted by Bob Dole

Word salad.

Boiled noodle

[Titty Meat]

Originally Posted by Woogieman

Yes, if it increases revenue...that's the whole point.

That has been disputed

https://news.stanford.edu/2015/07/30...icy%20Research.

[tk13]

Chiefs finally step up to the plate. Basically putting the ball in Frank White's court.

Joint statement from the Chiefs and @Royals

�� https://t.co/oYWWVFO5aO pic.twitter.com/aw6qwlSaiR

— Kansas City Chiefs (@Chiefs) January 5, 2024

[tk13]

Full Statement from Jackson Co. Execuitive Frank White regarding Chiefs/Royals announcement. pic.twitter.com/a2nwDfc6sN

— Harold R. Kuntz (@HaroldRKuntz3) January 5, 2024

[ChiefsFanatic]

I love Arrowhead, but we need a stadium with, at the very least, a roof/dome, but preferably a retractable roof.

For me, as a fan who can't afford a suite every game, other than laying radiant heating under the concrete where I stand in the winter, there is no amount of renovation or rehabbing that is going to improve my game day experience.

I will not vote for anything that doesn't include a roof, whether it's renovations or a new stadium.

I have a huge 4K television and I have decided that I am too old to do winter games anymore.

I know Clark Hunt and Mark Donovan don't care, because I am just an average fan, and I am no longer their target audience. Their audience is people making over 6 figures a year.

If Clark Hunt didn't grow up in Arrowhead, and if Lamar Hunt hadn't always said Arrowhead was his dream, the Chiefs would probably already be playing in a new stadium in Kansas.

[Balto]

Originally Posted by ChiefsFanatic

I love Arrowhead, but we need a stadium with, at the very least, a roof/dome, but preferably a retractable roof.

For me, as a fan who can't afford a suite every game, other than laying radiant heating under the concrete where I stand in the winter, there is no amount of renovation or rehabbing that is going to improve my game day experience.

I will not vote for anything that doesn't include a roof, whether it's renovations or a new stadium.

I have a huge 4K television and I have decided that I am too old to do winter games anymore.

I know Clark Hunt and Mark Donovan don't care, because I am just an average fan, and I am no longer their target audience. Their audience is people making over 6 figures a year.

If Clark Hunt didn't grow up in Arrowhead, and if Lamar Hunt hadn't always said Arrowhead was his dream, the Chiefs would probably already be playing in a new stadium in Kansas.

I still love the movable roof they tried to build.

[wazu]

Originally Posted by Balto

I still love the movable roof they tried to build.

Voted for it. Would have been so great. Even though that part failed, on the ballot along with it were renovations that passed that made both stadiums amazing.

Still don't get why either team needs a new one.

[Bowser]

Originally Posted by wazu

Voted for it. Would have been so great. Even though that part failed, on the ballot along with it were renovations that passed that made both stadiums amazing.

Still don't get why either team needs a new one.

The crazy thing to think about is that those renovations are damned near two decades old at this point.

It's clearly not about the facilities, it's about the luxury suites and the PSL's they can sell to bolster the purses they claim to need to remain "competitive" in the league (even if the Hunt money is a deep, deep well).

[RealSNR]

Originally Posted by ChiefsFanatic

I love Arrowhead, but we need a stadium with, at the very least, a roof/dome, but preferably a retractable roof.

For me, as a fan who can't afford a suite every game, other than laying radiant heating under the concrete where I stand in the winter, there is no amount of renovation or rehabbing that is going to improve my game day experience.

I will not vote for anything that doesn't include a roof, whether it's renovations or a new stadium.

I have a huge 4K television and I have decided that I am too old to do winter games anymore.

I know Clark Hunt and Mark Donovan don't care, because I am just an average fan, and I am no longer their target audience. Their audience is people making over 6 figures a year.

If Clark Hunt didn't grow up in Arrowhead, and if Lamar Hunt hadn't always said Arrowhead was his dream, the Chiefs would probably already be playing in a new stadium in Kansas.

Sorry your old bones can't handle the cold anymore, geezer. It's a young man's world, and football played in the elements is ****ing awesome.

[Smed1065]

Originally Posted by Balto

I still love the movable roof they tried to build.

Hum MO full of folks just good enough is fine. Did not realize MO and AL R the same...

[TLO]

Originally Posted by Smed1065

Hum MO full of folks just good enough is fine. Did not realize MO and AL R the same...

What?

[wazu]

Originally Posted by ChiefsFanatic

I love Arrowhead, but we need a stadium with, at the very least, a roof/dome, but preferably a retractable roof.

For me, as a fan who can't afford a suite every game, other than laying radiant heating under the concrete where I stand in the winter, there is no amount of renovation or rehabbing that is going to improve my game day experience.

I will not vote for anything that doesn't include a roof, whether it's renovations or a new stadium.

I have a huge 4K television and I have decided that I am too old to do winter games anymore.

I know Clark Hunt and Mark Donovan don't care, because I am just an average fan, and I am no longer their target audience. Their audience is people making over 6 figures a year.

If Clark Hunt didn't grow up in Arrowhead, and if Lamar Hunt hadn't always said Arrowhead was his dream, the Chiefs would probably already be playing in a new stadium in Kansas.

Tickets are selling for $800+. People don’t mind the cold.

[Titty Meat]

New Arrowhead will be outdated in 15 years just like the current one is