KSHB 41 reporter Tod Palmer covers sports business and eastern Jackson County. Share your story idea with Tod.
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Chiefs Chairman and CEO Clark Hunt acknowledged that the team has been in touch with interim Jackson County Executive Phil LeVota since he was sworn in earlier this month.
“We have had some preliminary conversations with him,” Hunt said before the Chiefs’ game against the Washington Commanders on Monday night at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. “He obviously has a lot of things on his plate, but he expressed eagerness to work with us, and we expect to expand these conversations in the coming weeks.”
LeVota, who was appointed by the legislature after Frank White Jr. was recalled Sept. 30, will serve as the Jackson County executive until January 2027 after White’s permanent successor is elected in November 2026.
The Chiefs — and their neighbors at the Harry S. Truman Sports Complex — hope to have their future stadium plans settled well before then, which means LeVota will emerge as a central figure in ongoing negotiations.
“We're still working on both the renovation of GEHA Field at Arrowhead, as well as the possibility of building a new stadium somewhere in the metropolitan area,” Hunt said.
Ahead of a failed April 2024 vote on a sales-tax extension, which helps fund Arrowhead and Kauffman Stadium, the Chiefs proposed an $800-million renovation.
But after the vote failed, the Kansas Legislature amended its STAR Bonds development tool in an effort to lure the teams across the state line. That offer, which was extended in July 2025, expires on June 30, 2026.
The Missouri Legislature responded in June 2025 by passing a tax-redirect incentive tool similar to STAR Bonds, but it requires a local funding source.
That means the Chiefs may try to go back to voters, a fact Hunt acknowledged would likely happen in 2026.
“If we pursue the renovation option, there's a chance that we would be on a ballot next year,” Hunt said. “It doesn't necessarily have to be April, and we haven't gotten that specific in terms of timing at this point.”
If the Chiefs pursue a new stadium, the team is expected to build a domed stadium in Kansas City, Kansas, but the team has yet to commit to a state, site or future plan.
“I wouldn't say we're in limbo,” Hunt said. “Stadium projects move at their own pace, and we've learned over the years that you can't really force them to go faster, even if you want them to. It's just important for us to keep working on both options. We're glad that we have both options and, hopefully, sometime in the near future, we'll get to a decision.”
The Royals announced plans three years ago to leave The K and build a new downtown ballpark.
After voters rejected a proposed stadium in the northeast corner of the Crossroads Art District, Chairman and CEO John Sherman’s team has focused on three possible sites — Washington Square Park in Kansas City, Missouri; Aspiria, the former Sprint campus, in Overland Park; and North Kansas City.
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