Dive Brief:
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Kansas City, MO, is funding a study to evaluate four or more downtown sites for a new Kansas City Royals baseball stadium, according to The Kansas City Star.
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Two of the sites are next to the Sprint Center, a 19,000-seat sports and entertainment venue, and the other two are in undeveloped areas of downtown that include surface parking lots.
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The Royals have played at Kauffman Stadium since 1973, with their current lease hosting them until 2030. While content to remain at Kauffman, the team has discussed relocation in the past. Advocates of a potential move say it could bolster economic development downtown.
Dive Insight:
Major league sports stadium and arena projects are typically coveted for their ability to draw traffic and ancillary development to boost the surrounding economy.
The Texas Rangers broke ground last month on a new, $1.1 billion ballpark in Arlington, TX. Developers are also underway with construction of the Texas Live! entertainment complex adjacent to the Rangers' field. The venue will include convention space, a hotel and 200,000 square feet of dining and entertainment space. Texas Live! visitors will be able to get a view of the Rangers' field once the new ballpark opens.
After winning a series of legal challenges, the Golden State Warriors are building a $1 billion basketball arena in San Francisco's Mission Bay district. That development represents only part of the team's plans for the area. The 11-acre site, which will be anchored by the arena, will also include 100,000 square feet of retail space, a public plaza and two office buildings.
Downtown Detroit could also get a new, mixed-use sports stadium if Quicken Loans founder Dan Gilbert can seal a deal with Wayne County, MI, officials. The site Gilbert has in mind is already home to an in-progress jail project, but the billionaire has offered to build a larger complex on a different site — at no extra cost to the county — if officials let him move forward with a soccer stadium there instead.
Gilbert's project would include a $1 billion stadium as well as a hotel, an office building, a residential tower, and retail, dining and entertainment space.