North Kansas City Starts Bidding War For New Royals Stadium

And so it begins . . .

Our readers have been smart enough to see this coming last year . . . But now, the power moves are underway. 

The basics . . .

NORTH KANSAS CITY & CLAY COUNTY HOPE TO LOOT THE KANSAS CITY ROYALS AWAY FROM JACKSON COUNTY & MAYOR Q!!!

Again . . . There is an underlying problem here . . . A lot of this depends on Jeff City and the agreements that are already locked in . . . We also doubt tax base support AND the willingness of NKC taxpayers to take on this EPIC burden. 

Also . . .

Let's go behind the looking glass . . . Given that new management seems to hate their fan base . . . There's a very good chance that all of this is merely a ruse in order to better extort local taxpayers. Time and time again we lament that local VOTERS HAVE BEEN LEFT OUT OF THIS PROCESS.

No, we're not calling for a referendum on this hot mess . . . But right now KCMO doesn't even know the final location of the proposed downtown KC stadium.

The Royals aren't dealing honestly with KC.

Real talk . . . Maybe watching them leave isn't such a bad thing. As we noted previously, keeping the Chiefs should be the priority for Kansas City.

In any event . . . Here's the Friday news blast that deserves to be met with skepticism . . .

North Kansas City Mayor Bryant DeLong tweeted what he called an open letter to the Kansas City community Friday. The letter is also signed by Clay County Presiding Commissioner Jerry Nolte and Clay County Western Commissioner Scott Wagner.

In the letter, the three Northland leaders said they’ve been in talks with the Kansas City Royals for months and hope the organization will build a new stadium in Clay County.

 Here is the tweet response from Mayor Q: 

"Kansas City and Jackson County have been strong partners for the Kansas City Royals since the team’s inception. Taxpayers from both jurisdictions have invested mightily in the success of the Kansas City Royals franchise.

"Having already signed onto a border war truce with our Kansas neighbors, Kansas City will not now engage in an intrastate regional race to the bottom that ultimately does little more than fleecing our taxpayers.

"We encourage the Royals to timely resolve the many questions surrounding their future home, so that all involved can speak openly and transparently on any future public involvement."

Jackson County Exec Frank White sent out this response as well . . . 

“Jackson County taxpayers have long supported our teams, ensuring first-class stadiums since 1973. Jackson County's unwavering commitment is demonstrated this year with over $50 million allocated toward the Truman Sports Complex. Importantly, the Royals are contractually obligated to play at Kauffman Stadium, located in Jackson County, until at least 2031.

“I echo the stance by Mayor Lucas: I refuse to participate in an intercounty bidding war that ultimately harms our residents. I will endorse a new downtown stadium only when I am convinced it serves the best interests of Jackson County residents.

“My commitment to collaborating with Mayor Lucas, the City Council and County Legislature to determine justified public support remains firm. However, I won't entertain this while the Royals attempt to pit local communities against each other. Our taxpayers deserve respect, transparency and loyalty.”

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Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com link . . .

Clay County leaders push for 'Wrigleyville' dream with Royals

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Dreams of developing "Wrigleyville" in the Northland are leading to a war of words between Kansas City-area leaders. North Kansas City Mayor Bryant DeLong tweeted what he called an open letter to the Kansas City community Friday.

War of words playing out between Clay County, Kansas City officials for future location of Kauffman Stadium

The battle for the future site of the Kansas City Royals continues to heat up, this time in a war of words on social media. Officials with North Kansas City, Missouri, and Clay County, in the interest of transparency, issued an open letter to the public on social media Friday saying they've been in conversation with the Royals about a new stadium site.

North Kansas City mayor makes pitch to land the Royals

The Royals announced last fall they would seek a new downtown stadium with a surrounding ballpark district, and since then they have studied 14 sites in the urban core as a potential location. Two of these sites are north of the river in the city of North Kansas City, in Clay County.

North KC mayor addresses 'ongoing dialogue' for new Royals stadium, ballpark district

NORTH KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) - A letter penned from North Kansas City mayor Bryant DeLong and county commissioners to the community Friday addressed conversations between the city and the Kansas City Royals regarding a new baseball stadium and adjacent ballpark district in North Kansas City.

Developing . . .