Sean McDowell
Jun 17, 2024
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — At least one Jackson County legislator questions the the appeal of Kansas STAR bonds.
State legislators in Kansas plan to use those public funding tools in hopes of luring the Kansas City Chiefs from their present home in Kansas City, Missouri to Wyandotte County, Kansas.
Jackson County, Missouri, legislator Manny Abarca, who represents the county’s first district, proposed a new three-sixteenths cent sales tax on Monday, earmarked for the Chiefs franchise. This money would allow the Chiefs to either renovate Arrowhead Stadium or to build a new football home in Jackson County.
While some facets of Abarca’s proposal resemble the proposal Jackson County voters rejected in April, this is unique because it targets only the Chiefs rather than both the Chiefs and Kansas City Royals.
Funding already in place includes a three-eighth cent sales tax that benefits both professional sports franchises. Arbarca told FOX4 News be believes this aggressive move is a means of staying competitive for the Chiefs, especially with proposals from state leaders in Kansas afoot.
“We are constrained by time. I think the teams are as well,” Abarca said. “We need to be more aggressive. That was the idea behind three-eighth cents completely.”
Abarca believes approving this move could lead to locking down the Chiefs for 40 years.
The Royals are also shopping for a new home. Abarca said he believes city leaders in Kansas City, Missouri, are focusing their efforts on the baseball franchise, in hopes of keeping them from crossing the state line. He’d like to see this included on the November ballot for Jackson County voters, and he’d like to see county and local leaders receive more assistance from state lawmakers in Jefferson City.
“One way or another, we have a deadline fast approaching. We know across the state line, they’re moving aggressively in unison with their state and local governments to try to recruit the teams over. We should be doing the same,” Abarca said.
Sean Smith, Jackson County representative from the sixth district, disagrees with Abarca’s proposal, saying he wants to see the city and county working in unison.
“Maybe the county does a preponderance of funding for just the Truman Sports Complex for whichever teams choose to stay there, and if there’s a desire on the city and state’s part to help finance the Royals, maybe that’s where they’re giving the preponderance of their funding,” Smith said.
Abarca said local leaders aren’t kept in the loop concerning either teams future, especially when it comes to keeping them in Missouri. FOX4 News reached out to Jackson County Executive Frank White three times on Monday, but his office didn’t return our calls.
Late on Monday, county commissioners assigned the proposed ordinance to committee, leading to further discussions in the near future. The deadline for including items on the November ballot in Jackson County is August 27th.