Group submits request for citywide vote in April related to downtown Royals stadium

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — KSHB 41 reporter Charlie Keegan covers local government and has covered the Royals stadium relocation debate for three years. Share your story idea with Charlie.

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A group opposed to Kansas City paying for part of a new downtown baseball stadium for the Royals submitted a formal request Tuesday for a citywide vote in April 2027 related to the project.

Missouri Workers Power first gathered signatures for an initiative petition it submitted to the city earlier in the summer. The city council had until August 31 to act on the petition. It did not.

That inaction opened the door for the group to go back to the city clerk and request that the question go to voters.

According to the city charter, the clerk must next notify the city council of the request, and the council must place the question on the next available city election. That’ll be in April 2027 since the deadline for the city to add a question to the November ballot was Aug. 25.

“It’s time for elected leaders to put our community over corporate greed,” said Terrence Wise, a leader with Missouri Workers Power.

Jason Gould/KSHB

The petition from Missouri Workers Power asks voters to pass a new law. The new law would require any future funding, designing, planning, or permitting decisions related to sports and entertainment venues with more than 2,500 to go to a citywide vote for approval.

That law would apply to future issues related to the Royals, as well as Starlight Theater, the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts, CPKC Stadium, and other venues.

“We’ll continue our work to bring an outstanding world-class baseball stadium to the core of our city, and there is nothing that changed yesterday, today or tomorrow,” Mayor Quinton Lucas said.

Jason Gould/KSHB.

The city council approved funding and development agreements with the Royals in August. They committed $600 million in city funding to the $1.9 billion stadium project total.

The city council will review a rezoning request on Thursday to pave the way for the new stadium.

The city charter says the council can repeal any ordinance passed by voters if nine of the 13 members agree. Eleven of the members voted in support of the Royals proposal last month.

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