<\/p>\n
Nearly two months after the Kansas City Royals announced a new stadium<\/a> near downtown, Missouri\u2019s financial role<\/a> in the roughly $1.9 billion plan is still unclear.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n City officials had not yet applied for state funding to help boost the project, a spokesperson for Gov. Mike Kehoe confirmed Monday. The city is virtually certain to apply, but the lack of clarity surrounding the application blurs a key part of the stadium plan after the Royals\u2019 celebratory announcement in April.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The revelation comes almost eight weeks after city officials approved an ordinance<\/a> authorizing City Manager Mario Vasquez to apply for state money from a sweeping stadium-funding package Kehoe signed into law last summer. The ordinance also authorized Vasquez to negotiate up to $600 million in city money for the project, planned at Hallmark\u2019s headquarters in Crown Center.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The lack of an application has sparked questions from at least one state lawmaker supportive of the stadium project. But city officials who spoke with The Star, including Mayor Quinton Lucas, downplayed the issue, saying the city, team and state remain in close communication.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cThis is not an absence of engagement,\u201d said Lucas, who said stadium construction would need to begin this year. \u201cI think it\u2019s instead \u2014 how does everybody make sure that they\u2019re in a real cohesive approach to how the deal is delivered?\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n When asked about the lack of an application, a city spokesperson said the city was \u201ccontinuing its work in preparing\u201d it.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cWe look forward to the continued partnership with the State and the Kansas City Royals,\u201d said spokesperson Lane Johnson.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n A Royals spokesperson also broadly conveyed optimism about its work with the city in an email to The Star on Tuesday.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cThis is an active and coordinated effort with the City,\u201d the email said. \u201cYou heard us say at the announcement that we\u2019re hard at work with both the City and State, and that remains true.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The Royals and city officials are hoping the state will chip in money for the cost of the stadium, which is expected to be 60% publicly funded and 40% privately funded. To receive that funding, city officials will seek to tap into a law called the \u201cShow-Me Sports Investment Act,\u201d<\/a> which allows Missouri to pay for up to 50% of a new stadium for the team.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n But, so far, state and city officials have remained tight-lipped about the state\u2019s exact contribution.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Under the state law, the city would have to apply for funding with the Missouri Department of Economic Development and prove to the department that the stadium project qualifies for state incentives.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The project unveiled in April by city leaders would almost certainly qualify. Missouri\u2019s incentives package sets a minimum project cost of $500 million and stadiums must have a seating capacity of more than 30,000, two requirements already outlined in the city\u2019s proposal.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Total state dollars cannot exceed 50% of total project costs, according to the state law. The program benefit won\u2019t last longer than 30 years and contributions from local governments are also required. Under the law, state incentives would be clawed back if a team relocates its stadium, headquarters or training facility outside of Missouri.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Once Vasquez applies for funding, the Missouri department will determine the state\u2019s contribution based on the amount of withholding tax, sales tax and athlete and entertainer tax revenues generated by the team last year, a Kehoe spokesperson previously told The Star.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n In addition to funds from Missouri\u2019s incentives package, Kansas City\u2019s plan also authorizes Vasquez to apply for up to $50 million in state tax credits from the Missouri Development Finance Board.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The state board\u2019s executive director did not immediately respond to a call seeking clarity about whether the city had applied for those credits.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Lucas, in an interview with The Star on Tuesday, deflected a question about how much he estimated the state would contribute to the project, saying he would defer to state officials.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cI think you\u2019ll catch more here soon about what the next steps are,\u201d he said, referring to the city\u2019s application process.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n State Rep. Mark Sharp, a Kansas City Democrat and supporter of the stadium project, expressed surprise at the lack of an application on Tuesday and said he hoped the city would be working to \u201cget that turned in so we can have that funding available.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cI wouldn\u2019t say it\u2019s concerning at the moment, but it sure does make you want to raise an eyebrow,\u201d said Sharp. \u201cThis is a transformative project.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n City, state, and team leaders have widely celebrated April\u2019s announcement as the culmination of a yearslong fight over the Royals\u2019 future. But the announcement also left a series of unanswered questions, including the state\u2019s role in the plans.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Lacing those questions is the fact that the city\u2019s funding package is worth up to $600 million and the development agreement with the team still have to return to city officials for final approval.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Council Member Johnathan Duncan, who represents the 6th District, said he wasn\u2019t surprised by the lack of an application. He said the city still has not received financial projections for the proposed stadium and pointed to the fact that the development agreement still has to return to the City Council.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m not surprised I haven\u2019t seen anything, because I haven\u2019t seen the financial projections, I haven\u2019t seen the development agreement or anything like that,\u201d Duncan said.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Duncan, a frequent critic of the stadium proposal, also said council members had not been briefed on the plan in weeks. He suggested he might call for a closed session on Thursday to receive an update on where the application stood.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Amid the questions about state funding, a progressive advocacy group also attempted to throw a wrench in the city\u2019s plans last week. The political arm of labor groups, the Missouri Workers Center and Stand Up KC, turned in more than 4,500 signatures to try to force a public vote<\/a> on the stadium proposal.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n As stadium opponents convey confidence about the effort, Lucas told reporters on Tuesday that the stadium deal \u201cis likely to be done before you would actually have a public vote on the deal itself.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cI think the deal is likely to get done before we even have some of these discussions if we ever get to the point of a public vote,\u201d Lucas said.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Missouri\u2019s funding package<\/h2>\n
Funding questions remain<\/h2>\n