ChiefsPlanet - View Single Post - Chiefs McDowell: Why The Chiefs Pursuit to Renovate Arrowhead Has Hit A Snag

Balto · 01-19-2024, 02:21 PM

KANSAS CITY, Mo., Nov. 16 - In a move that surprised even the Chiefs, the National Football League awarded a Super Bowl to Kansas City on Wednesday. The decision was contingent on significant improvements being made to Arrowhead Stadium, including the addition of a rolling roof.

Kansas City is likely to be the host for Super Bowl XLIX or LI, in 2015 or 2017, as a way to honor the 50th anniversary of the Chiefs owner Lamar Hunt's leadership role in the N.F.L. It would be just the fourth cold-weather game in Super Bowl history, including the February 2006 game in Detroit. Super Bowl XXVI was in Minneapolis, and Super Bowl XVI was in Pontiac, Mich.

The proposed rolling roof would provide weather protection for the Super Bowl but allow open-air games in the regular season.

"Happy day for us and happy day for Kansas City," Hunt said, "and I think it will lead to some great things as far as the total renovation of the sports complex. We think it's an exceptional opportunity for mid-America, for Jackson County and this community."

The N.F.L. is again dipping its toe into a local debate over stadium development, as it did when it awarded a conditional Super Bowl to New York, contingent on the Jets' building a stadium on Manhattan's West Side. When the Jets failed to win approval for the stadium earlier this year, the game was awarded to Miami.

The Chiefs and the Kansas City Royals are negotiating with Jackson County for about $465 million in public money for improvements and expansion of Arrowhead and Kauffman stadiums, according to The Kansas City Star. The roof addition, which could also be used to cover neighboring Kauffman, could add as much as $200 million to the cost of the renovations.

A lease negotiated in 1990 stipulated that the two stadiums would be maintained in state-of-the-art condition, with no caps on expenditures. But the teams currently receive only $8.5 million annually in city, county and state money -- far below what is needed to maintain the complex. The Chiefs had proposed about $312 million in renovations for Arrowhead alone, The Star reported, with the team contributing at least $50 million -- but that was before the roof. The N.F.L. would help the Chiefs finance a portion of the renovation through a program that offers low-interest loans for stadium work.

Local voters are likely to face a referendum in April calling for a sales-tax increase of three-eighths of a cent for at least 25 years to finance most of the work. In awarding the Super Bowl, the league is clearly trying to sway that vote in the Chiefs' favor. Despite the team's popularity in the region and Hunt's standing as a beloved public figure, approval is not a given.

Last November, a bi-state vote in Missouri and Kansas to finance stadium improvements and the arts was defeated. And a group of Kansas City business and civic leaders is exploring whether money would be better spent building a baseball stadium downtown.

"It's obviously helpful for getting the renovation plan for Arrowhead," Jon Copaken, the executive director of the Downtown Council of Kansas City, said of the Super Bowl. The Council is leading the interest in a downtown baseball stadium. "And whether that is the type of thing that causes people on the baseball side to look the other way at a huge economic development opportunity for the city and go ahead with the renovation plan for the other half of the package, I don't know. Our efforts are not working counter to renovations and Super Bowls at Arrowhead. Our objective is to come up with something that is successful at the ballot so both goals can be accomplished."

The rolling roof was part of the original concept for the construction of the Truman Sports Complex, which includes Arrowhead and Kauffman. But when costs for the construction ran high in the early 1970's, the idea was shelved. Now, voters will have to decide if the roof and the renovations are again too expensive.

The chairman of the Jackson County Sports Authority, Mike Smith, says that the promise of a Super Bowl will be enough to make a difference. "This gives us the sizzle to put together a package for voters," he said.

01-19-2024, 02:21 PM	#136
Balto Veteran Balto's Avatar Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Scottsdale Area	KANSAS CITY, Mo., Nov. 16 - In a move that surprised even the Chiefs, the National Football League awarded a Super Bowl to Kansas City on Wednesday. The decision was contingent on significant improvements being made to Arrowhead Stadium, including the addition of a rolling roof. Kansas City is likely to be the host for Super Bowl XLIX or LI, in 2015 or 2017, as a way to honor the 50th anniversary of the Chiefs owner Lamar Hunt's leadership role in the N.F.L. It would be just the fourth cold-weather game in Super Bowl history, including the February 2006 game in Detroit. Super Bowl XXVI was in Minneapolis, and Super Bowl XVI was in Pontiac, Mich. The proposed rolling roof would provide weather protection for the Super Bowl but allow open-air games in the regular season. "Happy day for us and happy day for Kansas City," Hunt said, "and I think it will lead to some great things as far as the total renovation of the sports complex. We think it's an exceptional opportunity for mid-America, for Jackson County and this community." The N.F.L. is again dipping its toe into a local debate over stadium development, as it did when it awarded a conditional Super Bowl to New York, contingent on the Jets' building a stadium on Manhattan's West Side. When the Jets failed to win approval for the stadium earlier this year, the game was awarded to Miami. The Chiefs and the Kansas City Royals are negotiating with Jackson County for about $465 million in public money for improvements and expansion of Arrowhead and Kauffman stadiums, according to The Kansas City Star. The roof addition, which could also be used to cover neighboring Kauffman, could add as much as $200 million to the cost of the renovations. A lease negotiated in 1990 stipulated that the two stadiums would be maintained in state-of-the-art condition, with no caps on expenditures. But the teams currently receive only $8.5 million annually in city, county and state money -- far below what is needed to maintain the complex. The Chiefs had proposed about $312 million in renovations for Arrowhead alone, The Star reported, with the team contributing at least $50 million -- but that was before the roof. The N.F.L. would help the Chiefs finance a portion of the renovation through a program that offers low-interest loans for stadium work. Local voters are likely to face a referendum in April calling for a sales-tax increase of three-eighths of a cent for at least 25 years to finance most of the work. In awarding the Super Bowl, the league is clearly trying to sway that vote in the Chiefs' favor. Despite the team's popularity in the region and Hunt's standing as a beloved public figure, approval is not a given. Last November, a bi-state vote in Missouri and Kansas to finance stadium improvements and the arts was defeated. And a group of Kansas City business and civic leaders is exploring whether money would be better spent building a baseball stadium downtown. "It's obviously helpful for getting the renovation plan for Arrowhead," Jon Copaken, the executive director of the Downtown Council of Kansas City, said of the Super Bowl. The Council is leading the interest in a downtown baseball stadium. "And whether that is the type of thing that causes people on the baseball side to look the other way at a huge economic development opportunity for the city and go ahead with the renovation plan for the other half of the package, I don't know. Our efforts are not working counter to renovations and Super Bowls at Arrowhead. Our objective is to come up with something that is successful at the ballot so both goals can be accomplished." The rolling roof was part of the original concept for the construction of the Truman Sports Complex, which includes Arrowhead and Kauffman. But when costs for the construction ran high in the early 1970's, the idea was shelved. Now, voters will have to decide if the roof and the renovations are again too expensive. The chairman of the Jackson County Sports Authority, Mike Smith, says that the promise of a Super Bowl will be enough to make a difference. "This gives us the sizzle to put together a package for voters," he said.
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