Royals alleged to be misusing Jax Co taxpayer money

[chaglang]

"The Kansas City Royals have requested nearly $17 million of taxpayer money the past five years from the Kauffman Stadium repair and upkeep fund but spent only 9% of the money received on actual repairs and maintenance to the stadium, according to documents obtained by Sports Radio 810 WHB."

http://www.810whb.com/common/more.php?m=49&r=21

[aknowledgeableperson]

Misuse???????????????

The original Kauffman Stadium lease presented to voters did not contain any provisions for "Event Day Operations" but the Royals negotiated it into the current lease dated January 24, 2006, three months before the election. That three-word inclusion into the lease has been worth millions to the team

If related to "Event Day Operations" then where is the "misuse"?

[KCMax]

That is one of the most biased pieces of "journalistic" writing I have ever read.

The Royals have received at least $12.7 million from taxpayers that was approved by the Jackson County Sports Complex Authority as part of the RMMO provision of the team's lease with the county and spent it on full and part time employee salaries, security, cable tv, first aid, utilities, telephones and even payroll taxes...

Calls to JCSCA Chairman Beto Lopez and Royals President Dan Glass were not returned....

"Their (JCSCA) job is to be a watchdog for the taxpayers and all they're doing is rubber stamping," said a source close to the Authority. "Stamp, stamp, stamp."....

That three-word inclusion into the lease has been worth millions to the team....

"There is a culture of looseness that exists at the Authority," the source added.

OOH, NEFARIOUS! So let me get this straight, a clause that was negotiated before the vote, and approved by voters, has allowed the Royals to not keep up the maintenance fund to keep up a stadium that was heavily subsidized by voters to benefit the team and now we're supposed to be mad the team is benefitting from taxpayer money?

[KCMax]

Dave Helling: Taxpayer subsidies keep us in the game

Helling will be on 810 today to discuss with Kietzman.