Downtown Baseball Stadium

[QueSi2Opie]

Downtown is alot more important than 18th & Vine or any other place in the eastside.

I disagree. The eastside needs something BIG...and the Royals stadium would be BIG!!! Save the area between the Loop and CC for future parks and businesses to build their skyscrapers. Connect our baseball with our jazz district. Besides, I wouldn't call it Kauffman stadium anymore after abandoning the Truman Sports Complex. I'd call it Buck O'Neil Stadium.

[FangKC]

Note how deftly Devin slipped mention of tall buildings into a discussion about stadium placement.
Devin, are both the stadiums shown in those photos of St. Louis and Cincinnati baseball stadiums?

Do Cincinnati and St. Louis have their football stadiums downtown, or are they located in the suburbs?

In the Cincinnati photo, it looks like the stadium is constructed on landfill or a wharf next to the river. Is it? And what is that square-roofed building to the right of the stadium. Is that Cincinnati's arena?

[tat2kc]

For me, the biggest plus of this site plan is that fact that they would not be builidng a lot of addtional parking lots or garages. You'd force people to walk a few blocks, which would certainly add to the vibrancy of the area. Wherever a new ballpark goes, if it goes, needs to an area that will not only benefit the sorrounding district, but also the Royals. That's my only question about Washington Square. Is there another area of the urban core that could benefit more? Near the southeast corner of the loop is interesting, as is the 18th and Cherry, but that might be too far from KC Live.

Since this is the first plan to be submitted, I am really looking forward to the other ideas that may come out of this.

[StL_Dan]

i'll answer the ? about stl, fang

you are looking at busch stadium...current home of the baseball cardinals only. the rams play just north of the panorama in devin's photo. his photo is not set at a wide enough angle to catch all of downtown.

the dome is two or three blocks north of the those shown on the far right.

his photo is also a bit aged. u can tell by the incomplete building behind and to the left of the arch. this new building also hides savvis center, home of the blues along market street just east of union station.

[FangKC]

Tat, the E. 18th and Cherry location is the same as the Truman Road and Bruce Watkins location. The map Grid posted showing placement of the "American Century" baseball stadium indicates it would stretch from E. 18th and Cherry north to Truman Road and Cherry, and east to Bruce Watkins from Truman to E. 18th St.

The corner of Truman Road and Cherry is just 3 blocks away from where the downtown arena will probably be, and 5 blocks from the SE edge of KC Live. Since most of the parking for the baseball stadium will be around KC Live anyway, baseball fans will walk that direction regardless, so it's not too far. Making them walk to parking downtown will increase the likelihood that they will visit KC Live before and after games.

I used the E. 18th and Cherry location of the stadium in the previous post to illustrate how close it would be to the Negro Hall of Fame down the street near E. 18th and Vine. I didn't mean to confuse you.

[FangKC]

the rams play just north of the panorama in devin's photo...the dome is two or three blocks north of the those shown on the far right.

So the Dome is NW of the Eads Bridge and Laclede's Landing, right? The Landing must really benefit have both the baseball and football stadiums within walking distance

What is America's Center? Is that the convention center or is it an arena?

Did both the football and baseball Cardinals used to play in Busch Stadium? I can't remember.

[StL_Dan]

So the Dome is NW of the Eads Bridge and Laclede's Landing, right? The Landing must really benefit have both the baseball and football stadiums within walking distance

Yes....you are right on the money with that location description. I will speak from my own experience in answer to your question. The Rams hosted the Raiders a year ago last October. Me and a friend went downtown around 9am to hang out and check out the scene that Sunday morning of the game. Bar and grills were open and people were everywhere on the Landing. What was especially cool about the whole scene was this: there were fans clogging the city streets and surface lots tailgating....in and out of bars watching game day programming....and taking in the downtown atmosphere all around Eads and The Landing. Very cool atmosphere. I suspect businesses there benefit greatly from being close to the Ed.

What is America's Center? Is that the convention center or is it an arena?

America's Center was the name given the TWA Dome after TWA was purchased by American Airlines. Their lease on the naming rights ended and Edward D Jones Investments purchased them. It is now the Edward D Jones Dome.

Did both the football and baseball Cardinals used to play in Busch Stadium? I can't remember.

Yes....both franchises played in Busch until the Big Red left in 1987. Since then, Busch has been renovated for baseball only. Ownership has done a decent job of it. It's a great place to watch a baseball game.

[LyRiCaL GanGsTa]

[KCDevin]

lol cool, did you do that?
the walls look too much like STL's proposed Cardinal Stadium (which I think is butt ugly )

speaking of which, the new "Busch" stadium will have 46,000 seats, so uh... why can't we have 50,000?

[phxcat]

50,000 is too much for baseball. The best stadiums are 40,000 and below. The huge stadiums are the 1960's era donut stadiums that are going down all over the country.

[KCDevin]

could we still have 47,000 then?

[GRID]

38K would be perfect for KC.

[The Summit]

What kind of chance do members of the forum give this Downtown stadium idea?

I am a big sports fan, but I don't think I will vote yes for the bistate tax as it is now presented.

Even though I live 30 miles from Downtown, I would pay a tax to bring KC into the 21st century with a new Downtown ballpark and arena that would make me proud to be a Kansas Citian. Right now I can't wait to get back to St. Louis, but building the core of the city into a nationwide showcase will probably keep me right here on this side of the state!

Let's do it KC!

[GRID]

Sorry guys, I rarely delete posts, but this thread needs to stay focused. What we do with Kauffman and or a new stadium could be the single biggest decision KC makes for the next 30 years. Let's keep this thread active, informative and professional, thanks.

Anyway, Councilman John Fairfield who represents the 2nd District, which encompasses downtown took a bold step today in the Star. This city needs leaders like this who can and will stand up against the grain and tell people what should and needs to be done even though it might not be the most popular. I would recommend anybody email and tell this councilman to keep up the good work.

amy_schneider@kcmo.org

Posted on Sun, Feb. 01, 2004

This is the moment for stadium
By JOHN FAIRFIELD
Special to The Star

Replacement of Kauffman Stadium is inevitable, even if improvements are made.


Fairfield

In the last few months, I have had the opportunity to discuss with many corporate leaders, elected officials and members of our community their interest in a downtown baseball stadium, a choice I strongly endorse. In these discussions, I have heard many people talk about how a new downtown stadium for the Royals would greatly benefit everyone concerned and help revive Kansas City's major-league status.

Kauffman Stadium is now one of the oldest baseball stadiums in the country. The Royals badly need a state-of-the-art facility to showcase the outstanding team that they have built. Kauffman Stadium needs upgrades and improvements estimated to cost $177 million, yet replacement of this stadium is inevitable, even if these improvements are made.

Renovating Kauffman Stadium now will make it financially and politically impossible to build a new stadium for 25 years.

Locating a stadium downtown, where there is a concentration of corporate offices, residences and hotel and convention facilities for thousands of visitors, would greatly improve weekday attendance at afternoon and evening games. Downtown companies would have a stronger interest in buying a corporate suite at a stadium just a few blocks away. Workers in downtown skyscrapers would look out their windows and see the stadium. Visitors attending conferences at Bartle Hall would be excited about the opportunity to attend a Royals baseball game within easy walking distance of their meetings, making our city even more attractive to conventions.

Recently an exciting downtown entertainment district was announced. Add a new baseball stadium, and the current momentum for revitalizing downtown Kansas City would reach an even higher pitch as shops, restaurants, nightclubs and other retail venues locate nearby. Downtown office workers would stop for dinner or to shop on their way to the stadium for an evening game. Residents from the suburbs would have easy access to a truly central facility downtown. New businesses mean new jobs.

Fifteen of the last 16 major-league baseball stadiums constructed were built in downtown areas. Each time a new stadium was built downtown it acted as a catalyst for revitalization of the surrounding area and property values increased, in most cases significantly. There were also significant increases in residential and retail/restaurant construction. Following this trend, the St. Paul, Minn., city council recently unanimously voted for a proposal to build a new downtown stadium for the Twins.

What will it take to build a new stadium downtown? It will take money, of course, but more than money, it will take vision and leadership. Leaders on both sides of the state line, and from both sides of the river, need to join together to make this happen now. Spending $177 million to update Kauffman Stadium is only a temporary fix at best and won't solve the basic problem. And it won't help make downtown Kansas City great. Are we ready to chart a bold course for the future of Kansas City?

A baseball stadium downtown? It's now or never.

Kansas City Councilman John Fairfield represents the 2nd District, which encompasses downtown.

[tat2kc]

I'm amazed at the response that this initial design and thread has generated. In another thread, a downtown ballpark is the clear winner, even over an arena next to KC Live. I honestly thought that folks would want an area first, then a downtown ballpark. We're a small group, but the responses have been definately in favor of a ballpark before the stadium. And the reasons are well thought out!

I wish the city would have this type of public dialogue when pondering these high dollar projects. That being said, what percentage of a downtown ballpark should be picked up by the citiizens, and how much should the team pitch in? This is far more expensive than an arena. But the editorial in the Star is correct, refurbishing Kemper is only putting off the inevitable; we'll need a new ballpark sooner or later.

[phxcat]

If the city says to (dang it, I forgot his name!) "Hey- we have 177 million we are prepared to put into Kaufman- what are you willing to add to that to build something better from scratch?" What could he say? I would think that Glass (there it is!) would have to seriously look at throwing some of his own cash into it.

[StL_Dan]

If the city says to (dang it, I forgot his name!) "Hey- we have 177 million we are prepared to put into Kaufman- what are you willing to add to that to build something better from scratch?" What could he say? I would think that Glass (there it is!) would have to seriously look at throwing some of his own cash into it.

there's one problem with your hypothetical situation

MLB owners, even decent ones like Glass, DO NOT wish to spend any of their own money, even if it is a fraction of the total cost, to build a new stadium.

MLB owners like Glass seem more worried about the bottom line than improvements and winning. They may SAY otherwise, but their actions MORE than illuminate their true position.

[UMKCroo]

The dialogue in this thread has been great! As i think someone in this thread mentioned, i wish everyone in KC could participate in such a debate. Things might actually get done!

Taking Grids advice i just emailed councilman fairfield, congratulating him on his great work. I also encourage others to do the same, as well as thank star columnist Kevin Collison for his great work (kcollison@kcstar.com). His columns get things done i.e. crossroads liquor problem. And, who knows mabey his recent challenge to local architectiure firms will result in a downtown stadium!! Ideas have to start somewhere!

[trailerkid]

The reason the stadium has emerged as such a hot button topic is because the vision for the future is clearer than that of the arena. There are still a ton of question marks consuming the arena debate. I am not sure, but I almost think the stadium issue is strong enough to garner bi-state support. It also seems like the momentum of the stadium could carry the arena into getting built. The stadium will open the flood gates for downtown development (if it hasn't already been opened).

If a local firm (Ellerbee Becket or whoever) is chosen to design the stadium it would be cool if they dramatically descreased the cost of their services as a sort of thank you to the metro and for investment in the future of downtown. Besides, they already are coming up with plans just on the suggestion of the Star and Collison.

[tat2kc]

I wonder if HOK is going to join this discussion. Wtih KC being their hometown, this would be the city for them to pull out all th stops and design a signature ballpark that showcases the city and their own design excellence.