As Jackson County residents weigh whether they'll commit to a 40-year, 3/8th-cent sales tax to fund stadiums for Kansas City's professional sports teams, the Jackson County Sports Complex Authority and the county Legislature also have decisions to make.
The Kansas City Chiefs and Kansas City Royals have submitted lease terms and a community benefits agreement for review by the legislature and sports authority. But its unlikely that agreements can get signed before the public vote on April 2.
Sean Smith, 6th District Jackson County Legislator, told Up To Date the agreements are "extremely important and extremely complex," and shouldn't be rushed.
"I see this as an ongoing negotiation between the teams and the community; ongoing negotiation between the teams and the county," Smith said.
"So we, as a legislative group, need to take a look at the community benefits agreements and see if there's things that we need to change," Smith said. "There's some really significant things that I would need to see changed for it to get my vote."
- Sean Smith, 6th District Jackson County Legislator