In nine years, the present Chiefs-Jackson County lease ends.
Getting a new or renovated stadium is all the rage among National Football League owners these days. The Kansas City Chiefs ownership group is stepping right up to the podium yelling loudly and clearly that it is time for change. Whether that change is a renovation of a stadium that underwent massive renovations starting about 15 years ago or a new place in Kansas City or across the Missouri state line in Kansas is being determined right now according to the team president Mark Donovan. Recently Donovan spoke publicly to a Kansas City business group for the first time since he said at the March National Football League owners meeting that it is time to start exploring the team’s stadium future in the Kansas City market. Donovan told the Kansas City group to “take a breath” and “we’ve got a lot of work to do.” Donovan added that the Chiefs organization is going to take a close look at the team’s present home to see how well the nearly 50-year-old renovated structure is doing because the team is tied into a stadium lease with Jackson County through 2031.
“We do have to look at, does it make sense to build new? But you can’t even have that discussion and really get serious about it until you know what you have. And that’s going to take a while.” Kansas City also has a Major League Baseball Royals stadium lease issue with Royals owner John Sherman. The Royals-Jackson County lease also ends in 2031 and Sherman is openly talking about moving his business to downtown Kansas City. The Chiefs and Royals presently have side by side stadiums and both stadiums underwent a quarter of a billion dollars’ worth of extensive renovations between 2006 and 2010. What was good enough in 2010 is no longer good enough in NFL stadiums.
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