KANSAS CITY, MO. — The Kansas City Royals have selected a construction team for the development of the club’s new $3 billion mixed-use village in downtown Kansas City, which will be anchored by a new 34,000-seat, open-air ballpark. The 85-acre district will be located within the city’s Crown Center neighborhood on the corporate campus of Hallmark Cards, which is a partner with the Royals on the overall development.
The Royals have selected a joint venture between Minnesota-based Mortenson and Kansas City-based McCownGordon to serve as the construction manager at risk on the nearly 1.3 million-square-foot stadium. JE Dunn, also headquartered in Kansas City, will serve as a construction partner on the surrounding mixed-use district.
Upon completion, which is expected in advance of the Royals’ opening day game in 2030, the mixed-use village will be the largest sports-anchored downtown development in baseball and the largest economic development project in the history of Kansas City, according to the Royals.
“We’re proud to bring these outstanding construction companies together to build a world-class ballpark that will be seamlessly integrated with a best-in-class mixed-use development,” says Brooks Sherman, president of real estate and development for the Royals. “We have always said this is about more than a ballpark, and this combination of national pedigree with incomparable local expertise will produce the best possible entertainment destination for our hometown.”
The Royals currently play at Kauffman Stadium, where the team’s lease expires in 2031, according to the Kansas City Business Journal. Multiple media outlets report that demolition for the site in Crown Center could begin as early as December and vertical construction begin next May.
The Mortenson-McCownGordon joint venture is bringing on locally based Parson + Associates for the project’s community engagement campaign.
The Royals are the second Kansas City professional sports team developing a new home arena. The Kansas City Chiefs announced last year that the team is moving across state lines to a new $3 billion football stadium in Kansas in 2031.
Mortenson’s portfolio of MLB stadium projects includes Truist Park, home of the Atlanta Braves; the more than $200 million renovations made to Progressive Field, home of the Cleveland Guardians; and the upcoming home of the Las Vegas Athletics.
— John Nelson