KANSAS CITY, Mo. — There’s now formal opposition to the group supporting the stadium sales tax question for the April 2 election in Jackson County.
The Committee Against New Royals Stadium Taxes has filed notice with the Missouri Ethics Commission.
Part of the reason for the name? Their Campaign Manager Tim Smith said, in essence, the tax voters are considering is really for the Royals to build their new stadium.
“They’ve said it’s only going to be an extension of the old tax, but really, it’s not. It’s a new tax,” Smith said in an interview with FOX4 Wednesday. “And that’s sort of some of the misinformation that’s been made public in the last three or four months.”
The current sales tax that funds the improvements to Kauffman and Arrowhead stadiums would be repealed, part of the reason why what voters are deciding on April 2 isn’t considered an extension.
However, the new tax is 3/8ths of a cent, the same amount Jackson County shoppers currently pay. That tax expires in 2031. This new tax, if approved, would last for 40 years.
On the same question Jackson County voters will be considering with the Royals, they’ll also be considering whether the Kansas City Chiefs get to use the same amount of sales tax money to renovate Arrowhead Stadium.
The Chiefs have not said what type of renovation they want to do at the stadium, but the two plans will be on just one ballot question together.
Smith said any suggestion that the teams might leave Jackson County if the tax fails on April 2 is misinformation.
“That has never been said by any representative from the Chiefs,” Smith said. “In fact, they’ve said quite the opposite. As recently as two weeks ago, they said they’ve had a great 50-year relationship with Jackson County, and they intend for that to continue.”
The committee’s news conference comes just a day after Crossroads Arts District business owners met in a private meeting to talk about their concerns with the Royals new ballpark. Smith was there and on Wednesday told FOX4 he asked a question.
“What’s the source document for this statement that’s been repeated about this billions of dollars of economic impact? I looked at Mayor Quinton Lucas, I looked at Sarah Tourville, I looked at Brooks Sherman, and they all gave me the shrug,” he said.
About a half hour after FOX4 interviewed Smith, he and other business members held a news conference in the parking lot of Kauffman Stadium. They’re urging people to vote no April 2.
Another person who was at the meeting Tuesday night and the news conference Wednesday was Chartreuse Saloon owner Jill Cockson.
Last week, she found out her business on Oak Street, just north of 17th, is actually in the footprint of the Royals’ proposed new ballpark. If the Royals stadium ends up getting built, she’d have to move.
“Most of us felt like it was a sham. It was taken [to] run the clock out, make us feel like we’re being heard. It all seemed like a show,” she said Wednesday. “There were representatives from the Royals in the room, but they refused to talk.”
Before the ‘vote no’ news conference began, the Royals released the following statement:
“The Kansas City Chiefs and the Kansas City Royals are asking Jackson County residents to continue their proven partnership with our two storied teams and to vote to keep us in Jackson County for generations to come,” the team said.
“No one will pay more in taxes by voting YES on April 2. A YES vote for this partnership will continue the same level of tax support – 3/8 cent – and will result in additional tangible benefits to meet the needs of our community, including over $200 million in new economic benefits to the County and more than $1 billion in private investment.
“These investments will create an economic boost for the region, including new jobs and billions in economic output, all while keeping the Kansas City Chiefs and Kansas City Royals in Jackson County.”
Earlier in the month, the Royals formed their own campaign called The Committee to Keep the Chiefs and Royals in Jackson County.
They donated $500,000 to it. On Tuesday, it became public that the Chiefs matched that donation. Reports have not been made public yet for Smith’s committee.