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The Kansas City Royals recently released two renderings of potential ballpark sites in downtown Kansas City — and both look breathtaking.
The two proposed locations for these beautiful fields are in Kansas City's East Village and North Kansas City. According to the Royals' East Village Ballpark website, this potential East Village site would encompass 27 acres and lie on the eastern side on downtown KC. The visual renderings show that glass would surround the East Village stadium, as well as a futuristic pedestrian walkway that arches above Kansas City's downtown highway.
According to SB Nation's Royals blog, the potential North Kansas City site would be built just north of the river from Kansas City's downtown and would take up much more city space. In addition to the ballpark, this proposed location would also feature a conference center, hotels, office space, retail stores, a garden district, a park pavilion and a 4,000-person performance venue. Both potential new stadiums would seat 35,000 fans, with room for 3,500 more in standing room only.
You can see some photos of the potential ballparks below.
We’re excited to share the future vision of Royals baseball.
For more images and to learn about the economic impact of a ballpark district in both the East Village and North Kansas City, please visit: https://t.co/Cuz4H6wWD1 pic.twitter.com/KWbomvOo8B
— Kansas City Royals (@Royals) August 22, 2023
It's important to note that these are both potential sites for a new Kansas City stadium — meaning, nothing is certain yet. These renderings are the result of an open letter by Royals owner John Sherman that conveys his intention to leave Kauffman Stadium — where the Royals have played for 50 years — in favor of a new ballpark closer to Kansas City's downtown.
MLB.com notes that Royals ownership has promised over $1 billion in private investment for the new stadium project — although the team estimates that the project will cost more than $2 billion total. Therefore, it's asking that the remainder of financing be covered by public tax dollars. If the Royals secure that city funding, they plan to begin building one of these two new stadiums by 2028.
While everybody on social media seems to agree that both proposed ballparks look fantastic, some fans aren't keen to leave Kauffman Stadium just yet. Many common complaints state that in addition to the new stadium using the public's money, parking will be a big issue, downtown traffic would be dismal, and the $1 billion from the Royals would be better spent on player development and acquiring new talent — fair sentiment, considering that the Royals are currently 41-88.
Yet it seems like a matter of when, not if, one of these two new stadiums will be built. Even if the Kansas City faithful aren't ready to leave Kauffman Stadium, these visual depictions must be stirring up some excitement.
