Downtown Baseball Stadium

[dnweava]

The Stadium can easily fit on the site without closing Oak. Push it a few feet towards Grand and remove a few rows of seats in the right field. Heck, in the press conference they said they haven't even decided on field dimensions yet.

[DColeKC]

The reason they eliminated Oak is because they want the buildings right up against the stadium. Especially the office and residential that will have awesome ballpark views that can help demand higher rents.

[dnweava]

The reason they eliminated Oak is because they want the buildings right up against the stadium. Especially the office and residential that will have awesome ballpark views that can help demand higher rents.

Yea, I don't give a F about their theoretical higher rents. The street needs to stay open and I'm going to fight for it.

It's also not their street, the city owns it, so it will require a ordinance to be passed after recommendation by city plan commission. It's not a sure thing.

[GRID]

Man, I didn't even realize or just forgot about eastbound Truman. So that is being decked or more likely tunneled as well huh.

This 670 cap extension is going to be hella expensive. I mean if the stadium somehow gets it done, that's great, but I just do not see how that is anything less than a 15 year project with how fast KCMO and Modot do things, probably closer to 20 based on how long it takes for projects like this to happen from start to finish and in this case you are dealing with a state DOT that acts like it doesn't have a penny for KC and a city that also struggles to maintain what infrastructure it has.

I mean you are going to be approaching 3/4 billion dollars to build that entire deck from Wyandotte to Locust including the Truman tunnel, pedestrian bridge and basically needing to rebuild the freeway trench.

I think it's a great idea if it can be done.

My pessimism is coming form the fact that I was waiting for these renderings and they are great for the most part, but I was also hoping the renderings would come with real plans for implementation.

Meaning the press conference would have had people from MoDot and the city with plans in hand in how they plan to fund and build the freeway park, how much it would cost and how long it would take. Developers lined up (Even if Cordish) with legit plans to start construction on the dense development on east side of the stadium and exactly what it would include. Maybe a hotel chain with a letter of intent etc.

This plan worries me a lot now. Looks great. But is there any chance in hell it can be implemented as the renderings show? It's possible, but I honestly do not see anything that indicates it will happen at this stage.

The main reason everybody I talk to even likes this location is the 670 park, the bridge and even the development to the east. I think once the public finds out that none of this is even part of the plan and will have to be funded, designed and built probably long after the stadium opens, you are going to piss a lot of people off as they will think they have been baited and switched. Can't say I blame them.

[DColeKC]

The reason they eliminated Oak is because they want the buildings right up against the stadium. Especially the office and residential that will have awesome ballpark views that can help demand higher rents.

Yea, I don't give a F about their theoretical higher rents. The street needs to stay open and I'm going to fight for it.

It's also not their street, the city owns it, so it will require a ordinance to be passed and recommended approval by city plan commission. It's not a sure thing.

Yeah, I get it. I’m just telling you what’s up. They’re putting a billion dollars plus of their own money into the project, they care about what they can generate on the revenue side.

The city has already approved Oak going away as part of this plan in preliminary talks. Nothing is a sure thing.

[GRID]

My question is this. Do people support his stadium without all the extras?

I think I still do, but only if everything fast tracked to be done within ten years.

[DColeKC]

Man, I didn't even realize or just forgot about eastbound Truman. So that is being decked or more likely tunneled as well huh.

This 670 cap extension is going to be hella expensive. I mean if the stadium somehow gets it done, that's great, but I just do not see how that is anything less than a 15 year project with how fast KCMO and Modot do things, probably closer to 20 based on how long it takes for projects like this to happen from start to finish and in this case you are dealing with a state DOT that acts like it doesn't have a penny for KC and a city that also struggles to maintain what infrastructure it has.

I mean you are going to be approaching 3/4 billion dollars to build that entire deck from Wyandotte to Locust including the Truman tunnel, pedestrian bridge and basically needing to rebuild the freeway trench.

I think it's a great idea if it can be done.

My pessimism is coming form the fact that I was waiting for these renderings and they are great for the most part, but I was also hoping the renderings would come with real plans for implementation.

Meaning the press conference would have had people from MoDot and the city with plans in hand in how they plan to fund and build the freeway park, how much it would cost and how long it would take. Developers lined up (Even if Cordish) with legit plans to start construction on the dense development on east side of the stadium and exactly what it would include. Maybe a hotel chain with a letter of intent etc.

This plan worries me a lot now. Looks great. But is there any chance in hell it can be implemented as the renderings show? It's possible, but I honestly do not see anything that indicates it will happen at this stage.

The main reason everybody I talk to even likes this location is the 670 park, the bridge and even the development to the east. I think once the public finds out that none of this is even part of the plan and will have to be funded, designed and built probably long after the stadium opens, you are going to piss a lot of people off as they will think they have been baited and switched. Can't say I blame them.

Everything will start to happen quickly if the vote is won. Many of these conversations have been taking place but no reason to waste time and resources on detailed plans if the vote isn’t approved. Especially with MoDot.

The cap is looking great and I think there is more private money ready to be commuted but the Royals don’t want to put that out there.

It’s a huge project if you combine the stadium with the cap.

[GRID]

Man, I didn't even realize or just forgot about eastbound Truman. So that is being decked or more likely tunneled as well huh.

This 670 cap extension is going to be hella expensive. I mean if the stadium somehow gets it done, that's great, but I just do not see how that is anything less than a 15 year project with how fast KCMO and Modot do things, probably closer to 20 based on how long it takes for projects like this to happen from start to finish and in this case you are dealing with a state DOT that acts like it doesn't have a penny for KC and a city that also struggles to maintain what infrastructure it has.

I mean you are going to be approaching 3/4 billion dollars to build that entire deck from Wyandotte to Locust including the Truman tunnel, pedestrian bridge and basically needing to rebuild the freeway trench.

I think it's a great idea if it can be done.

My pessimism is coming form the fact that I was waiting for these renderings and they are great for the most part, but I was also hoping the renderings would come with real plans for implementation.

Meaning the press conference would have had people from MoDot and the city with plans in hand in how they plan to fund and build the freeway park, how much it would cost and how long it would take. Developers lined up (Even if Cordish) with legit plans to start construction on the dense development on east side of the stadium and exactly what it would include. Maybe a hotel chain with a letter of intent etc.

This plan worries me a lot now. Looks great. But is there any chance in hell it can be implemented as the renderings show? It's possible, but I honestly do not see anything that indicates it will happen at this stage.

The main reason everybody I talk to even likes this location is the 670 park, the bridge and even the development to the east. I think once the public finds out that none of this is even part of the plan and will have to be funded, designed and built probably long after the stadium opens, you are going to piss a lot of people off as they will think they have been baited and switched. Can't say I blame them.

Everything will start to happen quickly if the vote is won. Many of these conversations have been taking place but no reason to waste time and resources on detailed plans if the vote isn’t approved. Especially with MoDot.

The cap is looking great and I think there is more private money ready to be commuted but the Royals don’t want to put that out there.

It’s a huge project if you combine the stadium with the cap.

I hope so. It needs to be treated as one big project from start to finish and everybody involved should treat it as such. Meaning the 670 park has to be at least starting construction by the time the stadium opens so it can be open within ten years of today.

A stadium that might "inspire" the rest to happen, which is what I got out of the press conference, can not be the route everybody takes. That could push the cap out to 2035-2040 or even later. I just know how long things like this take.

[KCPowercat]

The city has already approved Oak going away as part of this plan in preliminary talks. Nothing is a sure thing.

Yeah that's very much not a sure thing unless it involves some sort of rerouting of Oak or bigger reconfiguration that nobody would be knowledgeable enough about at this point to be giving any kind of "approavl". Running Oak into a dead end is going to be a problem with the way Grand is already treated like a semi-open street.

[KCPowercat]

My question is this. Do people support his stadium without all the extras?

I think I still do, but only if everything fast tracked to be done within ten years.

the cap makes it a lot better project for sure and I understand your concern. If I could sacrifice the cap between tmo and this in exchange for keeping Oak open, I'd make that swap though.

[FlippantCitizen]

Cannot be asking the taxpayers to chip in first and take it on faith that private money and MoDot will come out of the woodwork to make deliver on promises with no guarantees. Closing Oak is a massive negative for this plan in my book. If the attendant development and cap is not built in conjunction with the stadium this plan has zero support from me and assurances that it will happen if only you vote yes is just not good enough of an assurance. If I still lived in KC I'd strongly be considering voting no on this and letting them go back to ground and meet us more halfway at a later date. We are under no obligation to sell the farm here.

[GRID]

My question is this. Do people support his stadium without all the extras?

I think I still do, but only if everything fast tracked to be done within ten years.

the cap makes it a lot better project for sure and I understand your concern. If I could sacrifice the cap between tmo and this in exchange for keeping Oak open, I'd make that swap though.

I agree that Oak needs to stay open although I also think the park deck is just as important. If they want to have the buildings incorporated into the stadium like they have, maybe Oak can be re-routed around the development to the east?

I think the better plan is to redesign the buildings so they are still part of the stadium as much as possible, but keeping Oak open. Oak is not needed much now, but if a stadium goes in, it will become one of the main streets in downtown KC.

[DColeKC]

The city has already approved Oak going away as part of this plan in preliminary talks. Nothing is a sure thing.

Yeah that's very much not a sure thing unless it involves some sort of rerouting of Oak or bigger reconfiguration that nobody would be knowledgeable enough about at this point to be giving any kind of "approavl". Running Oak into a dead end is going to be a problem with the way Grand is already treated like a semi-open street.

The discussion about closing Oak included discussions on how Grand will be handled moving forward. There’s certainly not a lack of concern about traffic flow and best practices. We can’t have it all and changes are coming.

[DColeKC]

Cannot be asking the taxpayers to chip in first and take it on faith that private money and MoDot will come out of the woodwork to make deliver on promises with no guarantees. Closing Oak is a massive negative for this plan in my book. If the attendant development and cap is not built in conjunction with the stadium this plan has zero support from me and assurances that it will happen if only you vote yes is just not good enough of an assurance. If I still lived in KC I'd strongly be considering voting no on this and letting them go back to ground and meet us more halfway at a later date. We are under no obligation to sell the farm here.

That’s not what they’re doing. They’re asking for tax payers to extend a sales tax to help fund the stadium and the stadium only. They can’t sit here and over promise that the cap will happen if you vote yes because there are many other involved parties.

Bottom line is if this vote doesn’t pass and they don’t try again, Jackson County won’t have a baseball team within 5 years.

[moderne]

I can live with the ball park super block since McGee is already not a through street with T Mobile on the north and Crown Center in the south. But losing Oak would cause me to vote no.

[rxlexi]

That’s not what they’re doing. They’re asking for tax payers to extend a sales tax to help fund the stadium and the stadium only. They can’t sit here and over promise that the cap will happen if you vote yes because there are many other involved parties.

Bottom line is if this vote doesn’t pass and they don’t try again, Jackson County won’t have a baseball team within 5 years.

Not picking on you, but IMO the renderings then should have included the stadium and the stadium only. The stadium as shown appears to literally include the village buildings and bridge path as integral components of its design.

I'm a huge proponent of downtown baseball, but this continues to feel frustratingly hazy and rushed. Not sure why timeline couldn't have been extended to the fall to present and pitch a real plan, whatever it may be.

[DColeKC]

Even if Oak remains, it will be closed for every single home game. I feel like we can come up with a better solution here.

[Highlander]

My question is this. Do people support his stadium without all the extras?

I think I still do, but only if everything fast tracked to be done within ten years.

I do. Being downtown gets it 75% of the way there for me. I like East Crossroads better than East Village and if the renderings are only partly accurate, it still looks like a nice park with great downtown views. I'd love to have all the connectivity back into downtown shown in the renderings but suspect that may not make the final cut. I don't live downtown and never use Oak so that makes no difference to me although I can see why you would want to preserve it as a through going street.

[taxi]

I remain disheartened that so many members of this forum support the wanton destruction of organic urban development for a baseball stadium when there are other, reasonable options. While money may satisfy some folks, for others it may provide little or no consolation. So-called successful real estate development and ROI does not make a city great. A great city has unique character and is created by unique personalities with their own unique dreams. Just look at how the Crossroads came to be what it is today and how a new generation of artists and dreamers are (slowly) spreading that greatness in an easterly direction. I reluctantly agree that there is a place for developments like P&L in a great city, but it is the antithesis of character and originality – qualities that thrive across the highway. We can have both, but we are replacing one with the other. It may seem like it's just a small, insignificant section of of the greater neighborhood, but the corporate sycophants will feed on this site and spread out until there is nothing organic or artistic left.

Just one example, of many: Imagine you bust your ass building a business in a quaint town outside of KC. Your days start early and end late, for years. You create a great artisan product and, against all odds, become successful. Then you make the next ambitious move, into the closest metro, and carefully choose the Crossroads because of its character – its unique makeup of local small businesses, most with an artistic origin, and interesting old buildings. You buy a dilapidated historic building and for over 2 years you risk everything to lovingly renovate it to fulfill your vision of a place that will serve and contribute to this carefully chosen community, all while ensuring the building will see another 100 years. Just when the end is in sight, you are forced to sell to a billionaire and then you watch while a bulldozer scrapes your dreams off the face of the earth. It will be replaced with a mediocre structure that will never last 50 years. How much is that worth? Can you define just compensation? And for a fucking baseball stadium owned by a billionaire and full of millionaire players? If you could build the "surrounding development" out of irony, it would be full of skyscrapers.

[FlippantCitizen]

I remain disheartened that so many members of this forum support the wanton destruction of organic urban development for a baseball stadium when there are other, reasonable options. While money may satisfy some folks, for others it may provide little or no consolation. So-called successful real estate development and ROI does not make a city great. A great city has unique character and is created by unique personalities with their own unique dreams. Just look at how the Crossroads came to be what it is today and how a new generation of artists and dreamers are (slowly) spreading that greatness in an easterly direction. I reluctantly agree that there is a place for developments like P&L in a great city, but it is the antithesis of character and originality – qualities that thrive across the highway. We can have both, but we are replacing one with the other. It may seem like it's just a small, insignificant section of of the greater neighborhood, but the corporate sycophants will feed on this site and spread out until there is nothing organic or artistic left.

Just one example, of many: Imagine you bust your ass building a business in a quaint town outside of KC. Your days start early and end late, for years. You create a great artisan product and, against all odds, become successful. Then you make the next ambitious move, into the closest metro, and carefully choose the Crossroads because of its character – its unique makeup of local small businesses, most with an artistic origin, and interesting old buildings. You buy a dilapidated historic building and for over 2 years you risk everything to lovingly renovate it to fulfill your vision of a place that will serve and contribute to this carefully chosen community, all while ensuring the building will see another 100 years. Just when the end is in sight, you are forced to sell to a billionaire and then you watch while a bulldozer scrapes your dreams off the face of the earth. It will be replaced with a mediocre structure that will never last 50 years. How much is that worth? Can you define just compensation? And for a fucking baseball stadium owned by a billionaire and full of millionaire players? If you could build the "surrounding development" out of irony, it would be full of skyscrapers.

Man, that just perfectly sums up my deepest misgivings about the site. Well said Taxi.