Truth vs. Lies | All Taxed Out

TRUTH vs. LIES
about the proposed new Royals stadium

Lie: The 3/8 cent sales tax is not a new tax it’s just an extension of the current sales tax.

TRUTH: The 3/8 cent sales tax on the April 2, 2024 ballot is a NEW TAX. The old tax will be repealed, and the new tax doubles the tax amount ($2 BILLION) and term length (40 YEARS).

Lie: Kauffman Stadium is in disrepair and the cost of renovations would be more than the cost of building a new stadium.

TRUTH: An engineering study was conducted by Burns & McDonnell that showed Kauffman Stadium is in “satisfactory condition.” Kauffman stadium was built in 1972, there are two other stadiums in MLB (Fenway Park and Wrigley Field) that are 60 years older than Kauffman Stadium and are not in disrepair. Arrowhead stadium is also a year older than Kauffman and only needs renovations. (Link to Burns & McDonnell report)

Lie: If the Royals don’t build a new downtown stadium the Kansas City Chiefs will leave the region because they want to use the space Kauffman Stadium sits for their own development project.

TRUTH: In January, the Kansas City Chiefs signed a statement committing to staying in Jackson County. The Chiefs are not leaving loyal fans in Jackson County and making the gross decision to destroy their brand by moving to another city. Chiefs leadership stated as much in 2023: “Our preference is to upgrade and renovate the stadium and make GEHA field at arrowhead even better.” – Mark Donovan, President, Kansas City Chiefs

Lie: The Royals new downtown Stadium won’t displace current businesses.

TRUTH: These are the list of small businesses that will be forced out if a new stadium is built downtown:

Green Dirt on Oak, a forthcoming farm-to-table restaurant at 1601 Oak St.

The Pairing, a wine bar and grocery store at 1615 Oak

St. Chartreuse Saloon, a Western-themed cocktail bar at 1627 Oak St.

Kobi Q, a Korean barbecue restaurant at 1531 Grand Blvd.

Mama Ramen, a ramen restaurant and bubble tea shop at 1513 Grand Blvd. (downstairs)

PokeSan, a poke and dumplings restaurant at 1513 Grand Blvd. (upstairs)

Prime, a bar and restaurant at 1501 Grand Blvd. Suzy’s Deli at 1533 Grand Blvd.

KC Kush, a cannabis products store at 1620 Locust St.

The Mercy Seat, a tattoo parlor at 210 E. 16th St.

The Supply Truck, a tattoo parlor at 1529 Grand Blvd.

Salon on Grand, a hair salon at 1537 Grand Blvd.

KC Conjure & Botania, a candle shop and apothecary at 1620 Locust St #400.

Royal Master Cleaners, a dry cleaning service at 1505 Grand Blvd.

The Cigar Box, a bar at 1519 Grand Blvd.

The Harlow, a wedding and event venue at 1525 Grand Blvd.

The Bear Champ mural by local street art group near 1600 Locust

St. Resurrection Downtown, a United Methodist church at 1601 Grand Blvd.

U-Haul Moving & Storage of Power & Light and U-Haul Truck Rental at 1520 Locust St.

The offices of businesses including Amgraf, AgSwag, Lexitas Legal, O’Neill Events & Marketing, Renaissance Infrastructure Consulting, Risa McKinney Photo, the Dojo on Oak and Steadfast Security.

Lie: The process for this sales tax ballot measure is the same as it has been in the past.

TRUTH: To date, no Lease Agreement or Community Benefit Agreement has been signed by the Kansas City Royals.

However, in 2006, when the sales tax was on the ballot, the Kansas City Royals had signed Leased Agreements and Community Benefit Agreements three months BEFORE Election Day.

Lie: Jackson County residents will benefit from the revenue generated by a new downtown stadium.

TRUTH: Jackson County does not receive any of the revenue generated at Kauffman Stadium or GEHA Field at Arrowhead. Neither for sporting events nor concerts, etc.

Lie: The new downtown baseball stadium will result in billions of dollars of economic impact to Kansas City and Jackson County as a whole.

TRUTH: Leading economist nationwide universally agree that building new stadiums with public tax dollars is a bad financial deal for taxpayers. Taxpayers fund the projects but do not share in the profits generated from these investments.

Sources:

https://www.fieldofschemes.com/about/

https://www.investigativepost.org/2021/12/13/little-economic-benefit-from-new-stadium/

https://www.cagw.org/reporting/fields-of-failure

https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2018/11/sports-stadiums-can-be-bad-cities/576334/

https://www.forbes.com/sites/jeffreydorfman/2015/01/31/publicly-financed-sports-stadiums-are-a-game-that-taxpayers-lose/?sh=14469c8c4f07

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