Kansas
Kansas City Chiefs and Kansas City Royals commit more than $200M in economic benefits to Jackson County as part of path forward
The Kansas City Chiefs and the Kansas City Royals today announced their commitment to remain in Jackson County if Jackson County voters approve an extension of the 3/8-cent sales tax on a ballot initiative this April. The Chiefs and the Royals have partnered with Jackson County for 50 years in a partnership that has worked well for all constituents.
As part of the proposed agreement between the teams and Jackson County, the teams have agreed to provide more than $200 million in new economic benefits to Jackson County over 40 years in a new lease agreement, alleviating the County’s obligation to pay stadium insurance premiums as well as the park levy to the teams. Under the agreement, the Chiefs will conduct an extensive renovation to iconic Arrowhead Stadium. The Royals will build a new downtown stadium and privately fund a $1 billion ballpark district.
The teams have not sought any increase in the existing sales tax and have committed to providing the County with significant additional benefits by:
- Paying for insurance coverages for their respective facilities – costs currently paid by the County – for the extension term of the Chiefs’ lease and new term of the Royals’ lease. This will result in a cost savings to the County of approximately $80 million to $100 million over the course of the extended and new term of the leases.
- Providing the County the ability to reallocate each team’s share of an existing park property tax for other County uses for the extension term of the Chiefs’ lease and new term of the Royals’ lease. This will allow the County to utilize approximately $140 million for other County purposes over the course of the extended and new term of the leases.
- The teams are committed to entering into a robust community benefits agreement similar to agreements provided by other NFL and MLB teams for other venues providing for various initiatives that will benefit the citizens of Jackson County.
The teams are appreciative of the City’s efforts to provide assistance and development structures that will also facilitate these exciting projects. These efforts are also contemplated to specifically benefit the County.
The partnership between Jackson County, the Chiefs and Royals has been a tremendous success over the past 50 years, and directly responsible for much of the great momentum our hometown has built. The framework described here is a significant financial benefit for Jackson County, collaboratively built around concerns expressed by the County Executive and other local leaders, and provides a further boost to Kansas City and the region for decades to come.
KSHB 41 reporter Olivia Acree covers portions of Johnson County, Kansas, including Olathe and Lenexa. Share your story idea with Olivia.
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If the motto to live by is to get 1 hour of movement a day, the Parkinson’s community in Kansas City is exceeding it.
Bob Zipse has been fighting Parkinson’s for 10 years. He said the diagnosis hit him hard.
Leawood’s Parkinson’s Exercise and Wellness Center expands services as diagnoses climb
“I was super depressed. I mean, I was in a chair. Did you want to move? Look around, just horrible. Because there’s no resources. Where do I go with the time?”
Zipse said the disease can be an isolating experience.
KSHB
“Parkinson’s, I say, is a very lonely, lonely disease. Either people don’t want to deal with you, or you’re embarrassing.”
He found the Parkinson’s Exercise and Wellness Center at his lowest point. Now, he sees people around him pushing past their limits.
“You see people out here, they’re in the mid-70s, they’re doing push-ups, sit-ups, lifting weights. I mean, it’s amazing, really,” Zipse said. “In here, we’re all the same.”
Sarissa Curry founded the center after seeing the power of healing through exercise and recognizing that diagnosis rates were increasing. An aging population and younger diagnoses are among the biggest factors driving that trend.
Kansas consistently ranks as having one of the highest Parkinson’s disease diagnoses and mortality rates in the United States, second only to Nebraska. According to the Parkinson’s Foundation, an estimated 20,000 people in the Kansas City metro alone are living with the disease.
“You see your neurologist once every six months to a year, and you see a physical therapist maybe a couple of months out of the year. Community-based programs are here every day to support this community,” Curry said.
Curry said the warning signs of rising Parkinson’s rates have been visible for years.
“They have been predicting this increase in Parkinson’s for many years. They were able to see the writing on the wall, they were able to see how the population was aging, and they knew that this was coming. We paid attention.”
She expanded the center to serve as an all-encompassing resource for people like Zipse.
KSHB
“I’d hate to wager what I would have been like. Life would have stopped for me, I think. This at least gives me hope, gives me some work towards and see some benefit of it,” Zipse said.
The PEWC will host a ribbon cutting on Wednesday, June 3, at 3:30 p.m. The community is invited to attend to learn more about the center’s services and the disease as incidence rates continue to rise each year.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Two men were arrested following a lengthy Reno County Sheriff’s Office investigation into several burglaries and thefts in the area.
Garson Stanley Boyles was arrested May 21, and Jimmy Ray Miller was arrested May 27. Both were arrested on suspicion of 11 counts of burglary, five counts of criminal damage to property and four counts of theft.
The sheriff’s office said numerous stolen items have been recovered, including a vehicle. Investigators said several items remain missing.
Anyone with information about the location of stolen property is asked to contact the Reno County Sheriff’s Office at 620-694-2735. Those wishing to remain anonymous may call Reno County Crime Stoppers at 620-694-2666 or 800-222-TIPS.
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