Quinton Lucas, mayor of Kansas City, Missouri, was the featured speaker at The KC Downtowners’ monthly luncheon last week, the group’s first in-person event since March 2020.
Lucas focused his remarks on economic development, transportation and infrastructure, and baseball with respect to Downtown.
Lucas said that despite the challenges of the past two years created by the pandemic, there are positive signs of recovery.
“A lot of workplaces, even if they’re looking to shift how work exists, still haven’t given up their leases and indeed are still part of our downtown community. And that's important for us, certainly, as a city that receives an earnings tax every year. That's key for our own revenues,” he said.
Lucas said that law firms and other professional firms, many of which have not returned to their offices yet, will maintain their Downtown presence.
“To the extent that they may be reducing space numbers, which has been discussed, you’re seeing a re-orienting of space. People still want to be able to come downtown, have their office meeting, have their pitch to a big client,” said Lucas.
Lucas said Kansas City has been “fairly favorable” to commercial office development.
“It’s as if we saw in some ways the challenges that were coming in advance, which were that we want to make sure that there's somebody who's still looking to attract jobs in Kansas City, particularly Downtown if they're looking to attract their business to center here and what I continue to believe is the center of jobs and commercial activity for our region,” he said.
Lucas said Kansas City venues like the Kansas City Convention Center, Municipal Auditorium and the Kansas City Music Hall must be updated to attract events like gamer conventions. He noted that Brian Platt, city manager, recently appointed Kimiko Black Gilmore, deputy city manager, to serve as the director of convention and entertainment facilities.
“We're trying to make sure that we're innovative and ready for all of those important steps, so that's something we're very proud of,” he said.
Lucas said public transportation remains a priority for economic development Downtown and across the city. He noted that the recent groundbreaking ceremony for the southward streetcar expansion drew a large crowd, unlike most governmental groundbreaking ceremonies.
“But I think the thing that was amazing for that was hundreds of people were there and excited about the future, not just of streetcar, but what it has meant to development along the Main Street corridor and what it has meant in so many neighborhoods beyond that. . . . Folks who are excited to be part of the narrative and connected with it. We before had seen . . . . in excess of a billion dollars of economic development just from the Downtown starter line. And we are seeing it through all of the applications that we have for new projects between the Plaza and Downtown,” Lucas said.
Lucas said there are ongoing discussions about streetcar expansion across the Missouri River as well as an east west route.
“How do we actually look to ultimately link a lot of our communities in east Kansas City with a lot of the progress we’re seeing in other parts of the city,” he said.
Turning to Downtown baseball, Lucas said it appears to be one of the worst kept secrets in Kansas City that the Kansas City Royals want to move to Downtown, with most of the discussion focused on East Village.
Although a new stadium would generate economic development Downtown and in surrounding neighborhoods, the infrastructure would need to be overhauled.
“If you’re looking to move sewers, vacate streets, regrade land that would be public, then you’re looking at probably at least $150 to $200 million cost in a ballpark. You’d then be looking for improvements from MoDOT . . . in terms of exit ramps and other items . . . . you quickly get to about a billion dollars of discussion, and you have about $450 million of funds right now [generated from the Jackson County sales tax]. And so that is where at least there is some doubt as to where the conversation goes long term,” said Lucas.
He said there also is the variable of whether the Jackson County sales tax will be extended and the timing as to when to put it to a vote.
And, Lucas said, the Kansas City Chiefs add a “special variable” to the conversation about a Downtown baseball stadium. Because of the nature of the existing contracts with both teams, the Chiefs would be seeking an equivalent public spend, he said.