ALL RIGHT, LINN, THANK YOU. MAYOR QUINTON LUCAS MAKING A BOLD PROMISE ABOUT THE FUTURE OF THE ROYALS DURING HIS STATE OF THE CITY ADDRESS, THE MAYOR PUBLICLY GUARANTEED A DEAL WILL GET DONE THIS YEAR TO KEEP THE ROYALS IN TOWN. LET’S GO TO KMBC9. ERIC GRAVES, WHO WAS THERE WHEN THE ANNOUNCEMENT WAS MADE AT CITY HALL. ALL RIGHT, ERIC, WHY DOES THE MAYOR FEEL AS CONFIDENT AS HE DOES ABOUT THE ROYALS? CHRIS, NO BATS ARE IN CITY HALL, BUT IT’S CERTAINLY A TOPIC OF CONVERSATION THERE. MAYOR QUINTON LUCAS SAYS HE WON’T SPEAK FOR THE KANSAS CITY ROYALS, BUT FOR HIM, DOWNTOWN KANSAS CITY CHECKS ALL THE BOXES FOR ROYALS BASEBALL. HE TALKED ABOUT THE WORK THAT’S BEEN DONE TO DETERMINE HOW PEOPLE COULD GET TO AND FROM A DOWNTOWN BALLPARK. HE TALKS ABOUT THE DEVELOPMENT THAT COULD GO IN AROUND A DOWNTOWN BALLPARK, SAYING IT WOULD BE TRANSFORMATIONAL FOR KANSAS CITY AND THE ROYALS. NOW, ROYALS OWNER JOHN SHERMAN SPOKE A FEW WEEKS AGO, SAYING DOWNTOWN BASEBALL STILL SOMETHING THEY CERTAINLY CONSIDER A GOAL, BUT ALSO ADDING THEY HAVE OPTIONS ON BOTH SIDES OF THE STATE LINE. AS FOR A BRAND NEW BALLPARK IN KCMO WHERE ONE WOULD GO, THE MAYOR HAS LONG TALKED ABOUT WASHINGTON SQUARE PARK RIGHT THERE ACROSS FROM UNION STATION, AS THE SITE HE LOOKS AT AS A POSSIBILITY. HE ECHOED THAT TODAY. OBVIOUSLY, THERE’S BEEN A LOT OF WORK DONE NEAR WASHINGTON SQUARE PARK, AND THERE’S BEEN A LOT OF DISCUSSION THERE. IF THERE’S BEEN THAT MUCH STUDY, THE TRAFFIC INGRESS, EGRESS AND BEYOND, I IMAGINE THAT’S A LOCATION THAT WILL BE VERY HEAVILY EVALUATED. THAT BEING SAID, ULTIMATELY THAT’S A DECISION FOR THE ROYALS. THE MAYOR SAYS WHATEVER HAPPENS, THEY WILL BE PUBLIC DISCUSSION. IF THERE IS A DEAL, IT WILL BE FAIR TO TAXPAYERS AND THEY WILL MAKE SURE THEY CAN PROVE THERE IS LONG TERM BENEFIT TO A STADIUM INVESTMENT. NOW 2026, THERE’S STILL 11 MONTHS LEFT OF IT. FOLKS I TALKED TO TODAY SAY THEY’RE HOPEFUL THAT A DEAL COULD BE ANNOUNCED SOONER RATHER THAN LATER. HERE IN DOWNTOWN KANSAS CITY, ERIC GRAVES, KMBC NINE NEWS. WE’VE BEEN HEARING FOR ABOUT THREE YEARS NOW.
Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas promises deal in 2026 to keep Royals in Missouri
Updated: 7:04 PM CST Feb 11, 2026
During the 2026 State of the City address, Kansas City, Missouri, Mayor Quinton Lucas gave a bold promise that the city will have a deal this year to keep the Royals in Kansas City.”We will get a deal done in 2026 that’s fair and transparent for our taxpayers, our future, and our team,” Lucas said.KMBC asked Lucas why he feels so confident about the Royals staying in Kansas City now.”Kansas City makes a lot of sense from both infrastructure development and opportunity in downtown Kansas City,” Lucas said. “I think we’ve done extensive studies on ingress and egress, how people can get around town.”Lucas said he wouldn’t speak for the Royals, but said he thinks downtown checks all the boxes.”We’ve kept strong relationships with the Kansas City Royals throughout the process,” he said. “So I have to say, I will never speak for them. I think they have important decisions to make, but I think in making a transformational decision, not just for the team but for this entire region.”KMBC reached out to the Royals for a comment, but the team had nothing to share publicly.As for where a downtown stadium could go, the mayor has backed the Washington Square Park site for the past several months. He reiterated that possibility on Wednesday.”Obviously, there’s been a lot of work done here in Washington Square Park, and there’s been a lot of discussion here,” Lucas said. “If there’s been that much study of the traffic ingress, egress, and beyond that, that’s a location that will be very heavily evaluated.”The mayor did say the stadium site is mainly up to the Royals.”What we are going to do is make sure that, whatever happens, we have an extensive discussion with the people of Kansas City, that it is fair to our taxpayers in Kansas City, and more than anything, that we can build a strong economic case for how there is a long-term benefit for our community in this investment.”Royals owner John Sherman spoke a few weeks ago. He said downtown baseball is still a goal, but said the Royals have options on both sides of the state line.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. —
During the 2026 State of the City address, Kansas City, Missouri, Mayor Quinton Lucas gave a bold promise that the city will have a deal this year to keep the Royals in Kansas City.
“We will get a deal done in 2026 that’s fair and transparent for our taxpayers, our future, and our team,” Lucas said.
KMBC asked Lucas why he feels so confident about the Royals staying in Kansas City now.
“Kansas City makes a lot of sense from both infrastructure development and opportunity in downtown Kansas City,” Lucas said. “I think we’ve done extensive studies on ingress and egress, how people can get around town.”
Lucas said he wouldn’t speak for the Royals, but said he thinks downtown checks all the boxes.
“We’ve kept strong relationships with the Kansas City Royals throughout the process,” he said. “So I have to say, I will never speak for them. I think they have important decisions to make, but I think in making a transformational decision, not just for the team but for this entire region.”
KMBC reached out to the Royals for a comment, but the team had nothing to share publicly.
As for where a downtown stadium could go, the mayor has backed the Washington Square Park site for the past several months. He reiterated that possibility on Wednesday.
“Obviously, there’s been a lot of work done here in Washington Square Park, and there’s been a lot of discussion here,” Lucas said. “If there’s been that much study of the traffic ingress, egress, and beyond that, that’s a location that will be very heavily evaluated.”
The mayor did say the stadium site is mainly up to the Royals.
“What we are going to do is make sure that, whatever happens, we have an extensive discussion with the people of Kansas City, that it is fair to our taxpayers in Kansas City, and more than anything, that we can build a strong economic case for how there is a long-term benefit for our community in this investment.”
Royals owner John Sherman spoke a few weeks ago. He said downtown baseball is still a goal, but said the Royals have options on both sides of the state line.