Downtown KC Ballpark: It’s the bottom of the 9th, and we need to rally!

Kansas City stands at a crossroads with the unique opportunity to correct past wrongs of misplacing critical community assets in isolation from other key amenities and neighborhoods. A new Royals stadium at Washington Square Park in Downtown Kansas City would integrate seamlessly with surrounding neighborhoods and activity centers while simultaneously creating better access to the entire region. The new ballpark would no longer stand alone, separated from communities and amenities, but integrate within the heart of our city, where legacy buildings, businesses, and culture have been built. 

Today, Downtown Kansas City is the region’s largest employment center, blended with the fastest-growing residential neighborhood in the metropolitan area, creating a vibrant, mixed-use district that averages more than 184,000 daily visitors. Downtown provides a thriving, sustainable environment for the Royals to achieve incredible success while building upon the $10 billion dollars of community investment over the past two decades. Unique assets like a Downtown ballpark have synergy with these key amenities. They mutually support each other and exponentially add to the economic impact of the region. New office, residential, and retail features that are part of the ballpark district will have the support of these activity generators to keep the district vibrant, successful, and growing throughout the year. However, that relationship is mutually supportive, as the millions of Royals’ fans will walk through all the amazing offerings Downtown provides, supporting and experiencing our neighborhoods, rich with diverse heritage, great entertainment venues, restaurants, and retail. Together, these amenities will exponentially add to the economic impact of the region. 

A Downtown ballpark will be an economic engine for our city and region.  As the Imagine Downtown KC strategic plan highlights, “Cities that have developed Downtown ballparks have experienced substantial secondary economic development. These unique assets have a multiplier effect in an urban context.” Not only that, but a ballpark district can be a catalyst for generational change in our urban center and be a causal agent in continuing to break down the historic divisions within our community; it has the potential to secure Kansas City’s place as the comeback story of American cities: one of the most livable and progressive cities in America and on the global stage.

If you want to go to baseball games downtown, this is the moment your voice needs to be heard.

Three things you can do right now:

1. Forward this blog post to 5 friends and ask for their support.
2. Email the decision makers! (addresses below)
   Write your own or copy this: “I support Washington Square Park for the Royals’ new stadium. Let’s keep the team in the heart of our city!”
3. Share on social media. Use the Instagram posts below, or create your own. Add #WeLoveKCBaseball” and tag @royals

Email The Royals:
communityrelations@royals.com

Email City Council:
mayorQ@kcmo.org
kevin.oneill@kcmo.org
lisa.minardi@kcmo.org
wes.rogers@kcmo.org
melissa.patterson@kcmo.org
melissa.robinson@kcmo.org
crispin.rea@kcmo.org
eric.bunch@kcmo.org
darrell.curls@kcmo.org
ryana.parks-shaw@kcmo.org
andrea.bough@kcmo.org
nathan.willett@kcmo.org