ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – The Chiefs have set a deadline of six months from now to decide on a plan for the future of Arrowhead Stadium, whether that means renovating their iconic home or building an entirely new stadium in Kansas or Missouri.
After a joint ballot initiative with the Royals to help fund facilities by extending a sales tax was rejected by voters in Jackson County, Missouri, earlier this year, the teams agreed to move forward with separate plans. Now, they are waiting for the leaders in both states that comprise the Kansas City metro to put forward their best pitches.
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Legislators in Kansas approved a plan last month that would finance up to 70% of the cost of new stadiums for pro sports franchises with an eye on luring the Chiefs across the state line. Missouri Gov. Mike Parson responded a week later by saying he expects his state to put together an aid plan by the end of the year to keep the teams on its side of the metro.
“This is a generational decision. This is going to impact the future of this franchise for generations,” Chiefs president Mark Donovan said Friday, the day that veterans reported to training camp at Missouri Western in St. Joseph, Missouri.
“We have to get this right,” Donovan said. “We are going to do the due-diligence. We are going to take our time and do it right. But there is a reality to the timing. You can only take so much time to get it right. And that window is starting to close.”
The Chiefs and Royals have played for more than five decades at the Truman Sports Complex, where a lease agreement calls for the use of a sales tax for their upkeep. And while Arrowhead Stadium and Kauffman Stadium remain beloved by fans, the reality is both are becoming outdated, and it's unclear how long they would last even if they were renovated again.
Royals owner John Sherman has said his team will not play at Kauffman beyond the 2030 season, preferring instead to build a new downtown ballpark. The Chiefs initially hoped to renovate Arrowhead but are becoming more open to building new.
Chiefs owner Clark Hunt has long hoped to host a Super Bowl, and that would be more likely with a new stadium. If it included a retractable roof, the stadium also could land lucrative events such as the Final Four and college football playoff games.
One factor working against Missouri is its uncertain political environment. Parson cannot run for reelection due to term limits, and that means the Chiefs must wait until later this fall to know who they would be working with going forward.
“Really the deadline is how can you be up and running in a new facility or a renovated facility for January of the 2031 season,” Donovan said. “You're looking at an existing structure, something we've done a lot of work on, there is a little less lead time. If you are talking about something new, it extends the lead time a year and a half. So we feel like we're in the window now to get something done in the next six months to be in a good position. That's the timeline we're working on.”
Donovan said another factor in the decision is quite simple: real estate.
If the Chiefs build new, they want enough land for 20,000 parking spaces, so the franchise can retain its well-known tailgating tradition. They also would have to decide whether a new training facility — their current one is located near Arrowhead Stadium but is also becoming outdated — would be built near a potential new stadium or stand alone elsewhere.
“It's important to understand that we are playing Chiefs football home games at GEHA Field at Arrowhead (into) 2031. That is our plan,” Donovan said. “What we have to have is somewhere to play our games for the '31 season. To do that, we have to back up to, when do you build? If you’re renovating, how do you do it over multiple seasons while still playing there? A lot of factors go into that. We need to have options, and we need to have those options to a point of definition to make a decision.”
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