Fresh off the Kansas City Chiefs’ latest Super Bowl win and only five days after the neighboring Royals begin a new season of baseball, Jackson County residents shift their focus – at least for a day – from the fields of play to the future of the teams’ facilities. On April 2, voters decide whether to extend the 3/8-cent sales tax that now supports Arrowhead Stadium and Kauffman Stadium at the Truman Sports Complex.

In a special and timely town hall session, the Library, Kansas City PBS, and American Public Square examine an issue that has generated considerable debate and political maneuvering. Both the Kansas City Chiefs and the Royals have committed to staying in Jackson County if the tax extension passes, but the 51-year-old sports complex and Kansas City’s skyline could change considerably. Sentiment for a new downtown baseball stadium persists.

How did we get to this point in the sales tax consideration? What are the pros and cons, the economic risks and returns, of a subsidizing infrastructure for professional sports franchises? Would either team, or both, consider relocating if voters demur on the tax, and what would that mean for the identity of Kansas City?

Kansas City PBS' Nick Haines moderates the discussion, which will be broadcast in its entirety on the station on March 22. Joining Haines are:

• Sly James, former Kansas City, Missouri, mayor and campaign strategist.
• Becky Nace, former Kansas City, Missouri, council member and chair of the Committee Against New Royals Stadium Taxes.
• Patrick Tuohey, senior fellow at the Show-Me Institute.
• Gary Sarnoff, author and baseball historian.
• Sarah Tourville, Executive VP, Kansas City Royals

Watch the video