KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Kansas Legislative Coordinating Council agreed Monday to extend the deadline for the Chiefs and Royals to submit proposals for building new stadiums across the state line.
The statute approved by the Kansas legislature in May 2024 set a deadline of June 30 for the Chiefs and the Kansas City Royals to strike a deal utilizing the state’s STAR bonds program. The law allowed the LCC to extend the deadline to June 30, 2026. The LCC instructed State Secretary of Commerce Dave Toland to bring potential proposals back to the LCC for review by Dec. 31, 2025.
Chiefs President Mark Donovan said the decision allows the club to keep its options open for determining the correct location for its stadium, whether that means remaining in Missouri or relocating to Kansas.
“We’ve continued our discussions in Topeka with the leaders, we’ve made good strides,” Donovan said. “At the same time, we’ve been in active discussions with our folks on the Missouri side. I spoke to the governor this morning, and we continue to make strides there. So we’re excited about the opportunity. This is a step in the process, getting it extended — we hadn’t made enough progress where it made sense, and I’m excited to get that done.”
Kansas Senate President Ty Masterson last week said he believes Gov. Laura Kelly is more focused on luring the Royals to Kansas than the Chiefs. Donovan submitted a letter to Masterson last month asking the LCC to extend the STAR bonds deadline, saying he had not had communications with the state’s administration for six weeks. Donovan doesn’t see the stadiums as mutually exclusive.
“I don’t think I’d comment on what Gov. Kelly is thinking or not thinking, or what the folks in Topeka are thinking in terms of the two options,” Donovan said. “The good thing about the Kansas opportunity is that you’re sort of justifying your own, so we can justify our project. The Royals potentially could justify their project. They’re not really related, so we feel like (the Royals project) really has no impact on us.”
The Kansas STAR bonds program would provide up to 70% of the funding for a new stadium. The Missouri General Assembly approved legislation signed by Gov. Mike Kehoe last month that would finance up to 50% of the cost for a new or renovated stadium. Local funding would make up the difference on the Missouri side.
That would likely mean extending the 3/8th-cent sales tax in Jackson County dedicated to the Truman Sports Complex. Voters rejected extending the sales tax in April 2024, with 58% voting no. The 40-year extension was projected to raise $2 billion for both teams, including an $800 million renovation of GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. The Chiefs informed the Missouri General Assembly last month that a renovation of the stadium would cost $1.15 billion.
Donovan said it’s unlikely the Chiefs could meet the Aug. 26 deadline for placement on the November ballot, making an April 2026 election likely if the club chooses to remain in Missouri. Extending the existing tax makes “the most sense,” Donovan explained.
“That’s the feedback we’ve gotten from the legislature as well as the state,” Donovan said. “So I believe that’s probably the most likely path.”
Donovan said there’s much work remaining to get done on both options, but he sees the finish line in his sights.
“I would say this, we are so far down the line on both sides that now it’s the details. Now it’s literally getting down to the final points and making sure that everybody’s in agreement on what we need to do and that we have all the pieces lined up. Because our job is to go to the Hunt family and suggest, ‘Here are your two options. They both make sense. Let’s make the decisions best for our fans at our organization.'”
