Public meeting on rezoning plan for Royals downtown ballpark shut down

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — KSHB 41 News reporter Lauren Schwentker covers stories in the Northland, including in Clay and Platte counties. Have a story idea? Send her an email.

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A public meeting held by the Kansas City Royals and Crown Center at Union Station to discuss the rezoning plan for the nearly $3 billion downtown ballpark district was shut down after about an hour Monday.

Chants of "Let us vote!" brought the meeting to a halt as hundreds demanded answers about the future of the ballpark district, their properties and traffic concerns in Crown Center.

Some attendees of Monday's meeting were residents of the San Francisco Tower at 2510 Grand Blvd. They showed up to voice their opinions on the project.

“I think a lot of us are really excited for the development," said Ben Lindner, board president of the San Francisco Tower Association. "We'd love to see some new life being breathed into the Crown Center area, but this plan seems to create more questions than it's answered.”

For one San Francisco Tower resident, one of those questions surrounds property values.

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"We're excited about all that's going to happen, which could raise our property values, but not if it's right in our front window,” he said.

After a multi-year saga that involved both sides of the state line, the Royals made it official in April that downtown baseball was coming to Kansas City, Missouri.

Kansas City Royals

Plans call for a mixed-use district that would host concerts, festivals and other major events year-round.

"One of the things that's meaningful is the ability to shape a project like this here in Kansas City," said Sarah Dempster, an architect with Populous. "This will be a catalyst for a vibrant mixed-use district."

We've been following this project from the start, including breaking the news of the proposed downtown stadium back in April.

"Crown Center has evolved over time, and this next chapter is an opportunity to build on its legacy," said Stacy Pain, president of Crown Center. "We believe the continued success of downtown matters for the entire region."

The KCMO City Plan Commission is set to take up the rezoning proposal on Aug. 5.

The Royals hope to break ground on the stadium in 2027.

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