KSHB 41 reporter Lily O’Shea Becker covers Franklin and Douglas counties in Kansas. Share your story idea with Lily.
—
KSHB 41 News viewers voiced their concerns about parking downtown if the Royals build a proposed stadium at Washington Square Park near Crown Center.
We took the viewer's questions to those responsible for introducing the ordinance to finance a downtown stadium on Thursday.
“Literally, where could people park because the current stadium, Kauffman Stadium, has so much parking right now? "But like where can people go?" Lawrence resident Theresa Fry asked Friday at Washington Square Park.
Kansas City councilman Eric Bunch, who represents the city's 4th District, said he's confident with parking options in and around downtown.
“I am confident, and the studies are showing that my confidence is real, that we have enough parking already built that can suffice and can make the stadium work without having to build a substantial amount of new parking," he told KSHB 41
On Thursday, Kansas City, Missouri, Mayor Quinton Lucas said there are 19,000 parking spots within a 10-minute walk of Washington Square Park, which his office estimates could hold 30,000 to 35,000 fans. Those figures are slightly less than Kauffman Stadium's capacity of roughly 38,000, according to MLB.
The mayor pointed to parking access at Union Station, Crown Center and surface parking lots throughout the Crossroads District and downtown areas. He said the city wants to make sure there's a balance when it comes to parking for a stadium near Crown Center and existing institutions nearby.
“What this location offers that the current K does not, is having an option other than driving and parking your car," Bunch said.
Bunch pointed to the streetcar and more walking options for a downtown stadium.
For those who live and work downtown, they know how traffic flows.
Josef Voth lives in the Power and Light District and said parking downtown is already "pretty tight." He noted traffic impacts during events at the T-Mobile Center and when Chappell Roan performed on the National WWI Museum and Memorial lawn.
“I go school at UMKC, and I take the streetcar everyday and this is really going to mess that up," he said.
Kansas City resident Nicholas Feltz parked along Pershing Road next to Washington Square Park on Friday. He said he parks in the area once a week for work.
“In the morning, it’s not terrible," Feltz said. "The later in the day it gets, the parking gets less and less accessible and you have to kind of circle the block."
For Feltz, he said he sees the pros and cons of having a downtown ballpark. He said one pro is the streetcar.
“I will say, the streetcar will probably be a benefit, ‘cause you know, that was the whole point," he said. "The city put it in so people could use it for public transit.”
—
