As the deadline looms for the Kansas City Royals to choose a location for its new ballpark, the mayor of Leawood, Kan., has come out against the proposal of ballpark and entertainment district in Overland Park just days after the JCC made similar complaints.
According to the Kansas City Star, Leawood mayor Marc Elkins made a statement on Tuesday hoping that the Royals would remain in the Kansas City region.
“The City Council and I cannot, at this time, support the Overland Park Aspiria campus as an appropriate location for a Major League Baseball stadium,” Elkins said.
Related: JCC Asks Kansas City Royals to Reconsider Site for New Stadium
“Based on media reports and direct feedback from our residents, we share serious concerns about the potential impacts on Leawood and its citizens should a stadium be built on this property,” he said. “These concerns include traffic congestion, noise and lighting, public safety and emergency access, parking in residential neighborhoods, infrastructure capacity, and impacts on nearby schools, medical facilities, senior living communities and established single-family residential areas.”
The local Jewish Community Center made a statement earlier this week expressing similar concerns. The JCC’s national chapter wrote to the governor of Kansas, Laura Kelly, and explained that the organization has spent decades in that neighborhood, improving the area and expanding facilities. Years of construction and the traffic to come later, are serious concerns to the JCC.
“Given the concerns raised by residents and the opposition voiced by key institutions in this area, as well as the lack of information regarding the project, the city of Leawood cannot, at this time, support the location of a stadium at the Aspiria campus in Overland Park,” Elkins said.
Local community members have organized a petition against the new ballpark, despite the fact that a formal development proposal has not been submitted.
