KANSAS CITY, Mo. — While a Kansas City, Missouri, plan to help finance a $1.9 billion baseball stadium for the Kansas City Royals remains in its initial stage, two early procedural steps are set for Tuesday.
Last Thursday, Mayor Quinton Lucas and the City Council voted to introduce an ordinance for a stadium project located at Washington Square Park just north of Crown Center near Union Station.
On Tuesday, the plan will go before the City Council’s Finance, Governance and Operations Committee for a review.
The plan calls on the ballpark to be built on the site of Washington Square Park, which is under the control of the Kansas City Board of Parks and Recreation. The plan outlines the city entering into a lease with the KC Parks to use the site for a professional baseball stadium.
In an agenda item posted online ahead of Tuesday’s meeting, Parks Director Chris Cotten said staff is recommending the Board of Parks and Recreation Commission approve the resolution that would allow City Manager Mario Vasquez to enter a lease between KCMO and the Royals - or an affiliate - for Washington Square Park.
Commissioners are set to review the resolution at 2 p.m. Tuesday.
If the city’s plan passes out of committee Tuesday, the full council could take up the measure for approval as early as its meeting on Thursday, April 16.
In a statement last week, a Royals spokesperson said the club appreciated the work of city leaders in putting together the proposal. The club has not yet officially commented on the project's details.
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