By MATT PIKE
Negotiations are no longer happening between the Kansas City Royals and Clay County for a new stadium as the Royals pursue a move out of Jackson County at the end of their lease at Kauffman Stadium.
Clay County Commissioner Jason Withington announced that he is no longer negotiating with the Royals for a new stadium in the county, saying in a social media post that the "sense of joy has been drained out of him" over a lack of progress, also expressing frustration with the business of baseball and called negotiations with the team a closed chapter.
Withington stated that the county will now focus on other priorities, such as upgrading the existing county jail or building a new one.
The Royals' lease at Kauffman Stadium in Jackson County expires in January 2031, and while the Chiefs have announced plans to move to a new stadium site in Wyandotte County on the Kansas siide in 2031, the Royals have not revealed their next steps for a new ballpark.
There has been word on a potential stadium site in Overland Park that has emerged, but some residents are not in favor of the idea.
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