Funding breakdown: Who would pay for a new Royals stadium at Crown Center?

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — KSHB 41 reporter Tod Palmer covers sports business and eastern Jackson County, including Independence. Share your story idea with Tod.

—

There are a lot of numbers being tossed around related to the proposed Royals Stadium at Crown Center and it can get confusing. That’s especially true with respect to funding.

Is it a $3 billion project or $1.2 billion stadium? Well, both. Are taxpayers on the hook for $600 million or more than $1 billion? Both again, kind of. Bonus question: Is it 68 acres or 90 acres?

I’ll do my best to explain where the money is coming from and where it’s going based on the Baseball Stadium Funding Agreement, which got voted out of committee on Tuesday and will be debated Thursday at the Kansas City, Missouri, City Council meeting.

First, there are really two aspects of the project: a stadium and an entertainment district.

Phase I: The $1B public ask

The first and most expensive phase of the plan includes the stadium. It comes with a $1.9 billion price tag — which includes a new $1.2 billion stadium, $500 million for on- and off-site infrastructure, and $200 million for a new Royals team office.

If approved, the Royals and Hallmark would begin demolishing existing buildings in early 2027 to make way for the stadium and team headquarters, which will rise above the third-base/left-field side along Grand Boulevard, according to existing renderings.

The goal would be to break ground in May 2027 and start playing games at the stadium in March 2030 — a year before the lease with Jackson County at Kauffman Stadium ends, another (probably relatively minor) hurdle for another day.

Importantly, this is the only phase being considered for public money in the form of incremental tax redirects — from city and state revenues in a tax-increment financing, or TIF, district that’s yet to be delineated but I’ve been told will extend well beyond the boundaries of the project itself. The funding plan also calls for a new 1% sales tax imposed at the stadium, which would also be used to repay bonds.

The Royals will contribute $760 million toward the first phase, with the remaining $1.14 billion coming from public sources for a 60/40 public-private split.

The city intends to provide $600 million overall, including $90 million in infrastructure funding and $510 million in bonds, while the state would also redirect anticipated tax-revenue increases through the Show-Me Sports Investment Act, which is expected to generate $15.3 million annually.

In addition to the $459 million in Show-Me Sports Bonds, for a total of $969 million in publicly backed bonds, the funding agreement anticipates $23 million over three years from the Missouri Department of Transportation’s Economic Development Cost-Share Program and another $20 million, earmarked for highway system improvements in the area, from the MoDOT Cost-Share Program.

The Royals would also receive $50 million in Missouri Development Finance Board Tax Credits, but it would be considered part of the team’s private contribution rather than a public contribution, under terms of the funding agreement.

The Royals would be on the hook for cost overruns if the project comes in over budget, but the city — as property owner and leaseholder — would be on the hook for bond repayments if the projected TIF revenue comes up short.

Phases 2 to 10: “Ancillary development”

While the stadium will provide a nice boost to the Royals’ bottom line, the real benefit to the team financially comes from the “ancillary development” — the entertainment district that will be built around the stadium.

The Royals and Hallmark, which owns Crown Center, will pay for all of the surrounding ballpark district — which would be expected to generate more income than the stadium itself at full buildout, money that the Royals wouldn’t have to share with Major League Baseball.

However, if the entertainment district underperforms financially, the Royals have the right to ask the city for assistance.

—