(AP) — The Kansas City Chiefs plan to explore options that include leaving Arrowhead Stadium after voters in Jackson County, Missouri, soundly rejected a sales tax initiative that would have helped to pay for renovations to the 52-year-old building.
The Chiefs and Royals, whose Kauffman Stadium shares the Truman Sports Complex with the football stadium, have relied on a three-eighths cent sales tax for upkeep.
The franchises wanted to extend that tax with the Royals using their share of the money for a new downtown ballpark and the Chiefs envisioning an $800 million renovation of Arrowhead.
More than 58% of voters rejected the sales tax initiative after the campaign was met with criticism from all sides.
“Time is short for us at this point and so we need to see what other options are out there for us,″ Chiefs owner Clark Hunt said Saturday.
The Hunt family had promised to spend $300 million in private funds on the renovation with the remainder coming from public funding.
Now, the Chiefs are left to consider overtures from other locations.
That would give the NFL franchise greater latitude to seek the best financing package for itself, whether that means with a renovation of Arrowhead Stadium in mind or a completely new facility elsewhere.
MORAINE CITY, Kan. (AP) — Following Jackson County, Missouri voters’ resounding rejection of a sales tax initiative that would have helped fund renovations to the 52-year-old stadium, the Kansas City Chiefs intend to investigate their options, which may include moving out of Arrowhead Stadium.
The Chiefs and Royals have depended on a three-eighths cent sales tax for maintenance since their Kauffman Stadium is located in the same Truman Sports Complex as the football stadium. The Chiefs planned to renovate Arrowhead for $800 million, while the Royals intended to use their portion of the tax revenue for a new ballpark in downtown. The teams wanted to prolong that tax.
The sales tax initiative was opposed by more than 58% of voters after the campaign was criticized by all quarters.
Chiefs owner Clark Hunt stated on Saturday, “We need to look into our options because we are running out of time.”. With roughly 9 1/2 (years) remaining on our lease, it felt like we had a long runway when we first started this process three years ago. Now that we’re down to 6 1/2, I do feel a great deal of urgency. “.
Hunt has always preferred to renovate a stadium that his father, Lamar, who founded the Chiefs and helped get Kauffman and Arrowhead stadiums built, referred to as one of his favorite places in the world. The Hunt family had committed to funding the renovation with $300 million in private funds, with the remaining amount coming from public funds.
The Chiefs are now free to think about approaches from other areas. One of those might be right over the state line in Kansas, where representatives of the state government have expressed how much they would welcome the Chiefs to their region.
“Stadium development projects simply take a long time. We’re going to have to work very hard over the next year and a half, but with only 6 1/2 years left on the lease, I don’t want to put a number on it,” Hunt said. “.
Hunt stated that, instead of traveling in tandem with the Royals, the Chiefs would go in that direction on their own. The NFL team would then have more freedom to look for the best financing deal for itself, whether that meant building a brand-new stadium somewhere else or renovating Arrowhead Stadium.
The owner of Royals, John Sherman, shares our sense of urgency and is eager to find a long-term solution, so there’s certainly nothing stopping us from working together again,” Hunt said.
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