Royals owner Sherman gives new specifics on downtown ballpark, leaving Kauffman Stadium

Kansas City Royals chairman and CEO John Sherman, the club’s principal owner, released an open letter late Tuesday afternoon in which he makes the case for a new ballpark and the need to move on from the team’s longtime home at Kauffman Stadium.

Sherman first stated his intentions to explore a new ballpark for the Royals last September. But he had not offered many specifics about the cost either at that time or in subsequent comments, other than to stress that any new venue would need to serve the community as well as, of course, the Royals.

In Tuesday’s letter, addressed “To our dedicated Royals Fans and the Kansas City Community,” he put a $2 billion price tag on the project, which he described as “the largest public-private development project in Kansas City history.”

Sherman indicated the Royals are now focused on specific sites in downtown KC and near downtown, though he did not give a specific number of sites or identify any site in particular.

He also put forth what he described as guiding principles for this ongoing process.

“First, we would not ask Jackson County citizens to contribute any more tax dollars than you already do today. Second, we want to take these steps together, with your input and engagement, as a community,” Sherman wrote.

Sherman acknowledged his displeasure with the club’s results this season — the Royals placed last in the American League Central Division with the fifth-worst record in Major League Baseball — but quickly pivoted to the “great promise” for the future under executive vice president J.J. Picollo, who was elevated to that position this fall, and recently hired manager Matt Quatraro.

Sherman goes on in the letter to assert the necessary renovations to the club’s current ballpark, Kauffman Stadium, would “cost as much or more than the price tag to develop a new ballpark” and claims that a new ballpark would be “a far better investment, both for local taxpayer dollars already supporting our facility and for the Kansas City community.”

The Royals drew 1,277,776 fans at Kauffman Stadium this season over 80 home dates, for an average of 15,972 per game. The last season they posted an average attendance below 16,000 per game — not including the past two seasons, with attendance limitations in place because of the COVID-19 pandemic — came in 1975, when they drew 1,151,836 for 77 home games, for an average of 14,959 per game.

In his letter, Sherman referred to the project as a ballpark district — not just a new stadium — and made repeated references to the potential economic impact its construction could have.

“Wherever we play baseball, we will seek out efforts that result in real and measurable 1) community impact, 2) economic growth, and 3) an enhanced quality of life for the citizens of our region, with emphasis on historically under-represented members of our community,” Sherman wrote.

While the source of these figures is unclear, Sherman in his letter claimed construction of a new ballpark could create 20,000 jobs, $1.4 billion in labor income and an estimated $2.8 billion in total economic output.

He also wrote that the Royals anticipate that the inaugural year of the new ballpark would drive approximately $185 million more in regional economic output than currently spurred by Kauffman Stadium.

He further asserted that attracting more visitors to the region will sustain more than 600 new jobs, and that spending in a new ballpark district and across the region would create more than $60 million in new tax revenue over its first decade.

Sherman said a “listening tour” will take place throughout the region in coming months, presumably giving the public an opportunity to shared feedback about the potential project with the Royals organization.

The Royals on Tuesday also emailed a letter to season-ticket holders from senior vice presidents Brooks Sherman, the Royals’ SVP/chief operating officer, and Sarah Tourville, their SVP/chief revenue and innovation officer.

“It is our hope that this detailed letter advances the important conversation around a potential new ballpark district and stadium,” the letter to season-ticket holders read. “Your voice and perspective will be an important part of that conversation, and we welcome your engagement.”

The senior vice-presidents’ letter included a link to Sherman’s letter.

A brief history of Kauffman Stadium

Kauffman Stadium opened in 1973 as Royals Stadium and was renamed for former owner Ewing M. Kauffman on July 2, 1993. This year marked the club’s 50th season with that site as their home ballpark.

The Royals unveiled a $250 million renovation to the ballpark before the 2009 season, with various changes and renovations made to the playing field, as well as the ballpark, through the years.

Some of those alterations include moving in and lowering fences in 1995; the addition of the “Crown seats” and dugout suites in 1999; moving the outfield fences back in 2004; the opening of the Royals Hall of Fame in 2009; adding more than 120 solar panels on the Outfield Experience canopy in 2012; replacing foul poles in 2019; and installing updated LED video boards in 2020.