KANSAS CITY, Mo. — MLB commissioner Rob Manfred toured both locations the Kansas City Royals are considering for a new ballpark district and said both options are outstanding.
Manfred was in Kansas City, Missouri, on Wednesday afternoon to discuss the benefits ballpark districts provide communities.
GALLERY: MLB commissioner toured possible locations for Royals ballpark district, calls both 'outstanding'
"I would say two things. Number one, the fact that in Kansas City there are two sites of unbelievably high quality that are available for the building of a ballpark is a tremendous opportunity for this community," Manfred said.
He's referring to the East Village in downtown KCMO and a site in North Kansas City, where the Royals have narrowed down as the two options for the new ballpark.
"Both of these sites are outstanding sites for a new ballpark," Manfred said. "I think both of them present the opportunity for entertainment district development around the ballpark."
When talking about the impact of ballpark districts, Manfred brought up ballpark districts surrounding the Atlanta Braves and Washington Nationals.
"The first one is Washington, I lived in the district, worked in the district for 15 years," Manfred said. "At the time I lived there, you wouldn't go there. No one went there. If you went now, you got the ballpark, all this development that has high-class housing, mixed used development around it."
Royals chairman and CEO John Sherman expects the team to announce the location for the new ballpark in late September and renderings for both locations soon, too.
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