KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) - A clearer picture of what could be in store for the Kansas City Royals development in the Crown Center area came into view Monday.
The Royals filed an urban renewal rezoning and development preliminary plan for their Crown Center Ballpark District in Kansas City, Missouri, on Monday, through Compass KC.
According to the documents, the project area takes up roughly 91 acres. The plan includes ideas to split the district into 10 areas and “build upon the area’s established role as a regional destination.” Those 10 areas would be worked on with varying timelines, with the Royals planning to open the new stadium by the 2031 season and all 10 areas planning to be complete by 2040.
Parts of the plan were authored by Populous, which will serve as the design lead and architect of the project. Populous’ provided design guidelines that will be followed to outline the project. The Royals announced in late April plans for the downtown ballpark area, after years of speculation and conversation that ended with owner John Sherman working toward a deal with Hallmark officials to acquire land in the Crown Center area.
The $3 billion project includes 2/3 of investment from the Royals and private investments, Sherman claimed in April. The other 1/3 would come from the City of Kansas City and the State of Missouri.
The Royals’ preliminary plans for the Crown Center Ballpark District includes 10 different areas, with different portions of the project ranging in completion from 2031 to 2040.
Under the plan, the Crown Center ballpark district would include a proposed 8,219 parking spaces within the boundary of the site. That comes as city and team officials have downplayed some public worries about lack of parking availability in and around the stadium. The plan says there would be enough parking within a 1/2-mile of the stadium to deal with a sellout crowd at the new ballpark.