KSHB 41 News reporters Tod Palmer and Charlie Keegan have been covering Kansas City's sports stadium debate for several years. You can contact Tod or Charlie by email.
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An ordinance laying out a financing framework for a new Royals stadium at Washington Square Park will be introduced Thursday at the Kansas City, Missouri, City Council meeting, two sources familiar with the plan confirmed to KSHB 41 News.
We are not naming the sources to protect relationships, as they are not authorized to speak about the stadium financing proposal on the record.
No action on the ordinance is expected from the full council, which is expected to refer it to the city’s Finance, Governance and Public Safety Committee.
If the ordinance is voted out of committee at next Tuesday morning’s meeting, it could go before the full city council for approval as soon as next Thursday.
A Royals spokesperson did not immediately provide comment on the report.
It’s been a long journey to get to this point after the Royals announced plans in November 2022 to vacate Kauffman Stadium and build a downtown ballpark.
After a few false starts, considering stadium options in East Village inside the Downtown Loop and in North Kansas City, the club eventually settled on putting a new stadium in the northeast corner of the Crossroads Arts District.
But voters rejected a sales-tax extension in April 2024, which would have moved the Royals downtown across Interstate 670 from the T-Mobile Center. That proposal also would have included renovations at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.
When the vote failed, Kansas swooped in with alterations to its STAR Bonds financing tool and poached the Chiefs.
The NFL club announced plans in December 2025 to build a new stadium in Kansas City, Kansas, and a new team headquarters and practice facility in Olathe.
The Chiefs’ move complicated the Royals' possible relocation plans to Kansas, especially after backlash for the team to abandon any thought of building a new stadium at Aspiria — formerly the Sprint Campus — after acquiring the lease.
Negotiations also stalled with Clay County regarding the North Kansas City site, leaving Washington Square Park as the best, and maybe the only realistic, option.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
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