CPKC Stadium

CPKC Stadium under construction in August 2023
LocationBerkley Riverfront Park
Kansas City, Missouri
Coordinates39°07′13.2″N 94°33′58.5″W / 39.120333°N 94.566250°W / 39.120333; -94.566250
Public transitKC Streetcar (2025)
TypeSoccer-specific stadium
Capacity11,500
Construction
Broke groundOctober 6, 2022 (2022-10-06)
Construction cost$117 million
ArchitectGenerator Studio
Project managerHenderson Engineers[1]
Andrea Mulvaneu
Katelyn DePenning
Structural engineerThornton Tomasetti[2]
Services engineerTaliaferro & Browne, Inc.[3]
General contractorJ. E. Dunn Construction Group[3]
Monarch Build[3]
Tenants
Kansas City Current (NWSL) (planned)
Website
cpkcstadium.com

CPKC Stadium is a soccer-specific stadium being built in Kansas City, Missouri, for the Kansas City Current of the National Women's Soccer League, who currently play home games at Children's Mercy Park. The stadium is scheduled to be completed and opened by March 2024.[4] Once completed, it will be the first privately financed stadium purpose-built exclusively for a professional women's soccer team.[5]

History

The Current were founded in December 2020 as Kansas City NWSL, a transitional NWSL expansion team owned by Angie Long, Chris Long, and Brittany Matthews. The team was created on an accelerated timeline in order to accept and relocate the roster of Utah Royals FC, whose closure was publicly announced on the same day as the Kansas City team.[6] The new team attempted to secure Children's Mercy Park, a soccer-specific stadium in Kansas City, Kansas, that was owned and controlled by Major League Soccer team Sporting Kansas City, as a home venue. However, Sporting declined to share the stadium with KC NWSL.[7][8]

For the 2021 Kansas City NWSL season, the team instead shared baseball stadium Legends Field with the Kansas City Monarchs.[9] Due to delays in converting the Legends Field baseball diamond to a soccer pitch, Sporting Kansas City allowed the Current to play their first home match of the 2021 NWSL Challenge Cup on April 26 at Children's Mercy Park.[10]

Proposal

In December 2020, Current co-owner Chris Long first raised plans for a practice facility and stadium to Generator Studio design director Tom Proebstle, whose firm evaluated more than 10 sites before settling on a 7.08-acre (2.87 ha) parcel owned by the Port of Kansas City east of the Richard L. Berkley Riverfront Park designated Parcel 8, which had previously been used as a dumping ground for the collapsed Kemper Arena roof. Long initially sought to build both the stadium and a dedicated training facility on the same site.[11] However, team ownership separately announced, planned, and constructed an $18 million dedicated practice facility in Riverside, Missouri, that opened in June 2022.[12] Initial stadium concepts operated on an estimated need of 6,000 seats but expanded to 11,500.[11]

The Current's ownership formally proposed a privately financed $70 million stadium development with an 11,000-seat capacity on the Parcel 8 site in 2021, and on October 26, 2021, the Current's owners announced that they had signed a 50-year lease with Port KC for the property.[13] As of the announcement, no NWSL team owned or controlled its primary home venue, instead relying on soccer-specific venues controlled by Major League Soccer teams or venues for other sports, causing scheduling issues.[14] The stadium proposal included a safe standing section for supporters, reserved seating, suites, and tables, with all seating positioned within 100 feet of the pitch. The proposed stadium could also be converted for use as a music venue[15][11] and included retractable seating for potential reuse as a gridiron football field.[11] The stadium was also designed to support future expansion to up to 20,500 seats.[16]

In May 2022, the Current increased the planned seated capacity of the stadium to 11,500 and raised the required budget to an estimated $117 million.[17] The Current's ownership requested $6 million in state tax credits to help offset the increased budget.[18]

Construction

Construction began in 2022, with an official groundbreaking ceremony on October 6, 2022.[4] Construction of the stadium's stands began in May 2023.[19][20] Contractors J. E. Dunn Construction Group and Monarch Build led general construction,[15] and Generator Studios served as the architectural firm and designed the stadium's interior.[21] Generator contracted structural engineering to Thornton Tomasetti.[2] Taliaferro & Browne provided surveying and civil engineering services, including coordination with the United States Army Corps of Engineers on the project's potential impact on the Missouri River levee.[22][3]

The press box at the stadium was dedicated in November 2023 to the late Grant Wahl, a Kansas City native who covered soccer for Sports Illustrated and other outlets.[23]

Naming rights

On October 19, 2023, the Current announced that Canadian Pacific Kansas City, a railway company with U.S. headquarters in Kansas City, had acquired the naming rights to the stadium. As part of the ten-year agreement, the venue was named CPKC Stadium.[24][25]

References

  1. ↑ Wright, Jarah (September 21, 2022). "Meet the project leads and designers behind new KC Current stadium". Soccer Stadium Digest. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
  2. 1 2 "Kansas City Current Stadium". Thornton Tomasetti. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Friestad, Thomas (March 10, 2023). "KC Current stadium construction is about to go vertical at Berkley Riverfront". Kansas City Business Journal. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
  4. 1 2 Rittman, Emily (October 6, 2022). "KC Current stadium groundbreaking continues transformation of KC riverfront". KCTV. Retrieved June 13, 2023.
  5. ↑ Kassouf, Jeff (October 26, 2021). "Kansas City NWSL plans to build its own, privately-financed stadium". The Equalizer. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
  6. ↑ Kassouf, Jeff (December 7, 2020). "Official: Utah Royals out, Kansas City in for NWSL; Utah hopes for 2023 return". The Equalizer. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
  7. ↑ Cash, Meredith (October 28, 2021). "Kansas City's women's soccer team is building a stunning new stadium after an MLS club resisted sharing its home field". Insider. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
  8. ↑ Linehan, Meg; Tenorio, Paul (November 24, 2020). "Potential Utah Royals buyers looking to bring team back to Kansas City, sources say". The Athletic. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
  9. ↑ Cisneros, Juan (September 22, 2021). "Welcome to Children's Mercy Park: KC NWSL to share home field with Sporting Kansas City in 2022". FOX4KC. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
  10. ↑ Meier, Travis (April 23, 2021). "KC NWSL to play first home game at Children's Mercy due to 'construction delays'". FOX4KC. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
  11. 1 2 3 4 Charney, Marcia (February 15, 2023). "KC Current's new stadium poised to revolutionize women's athletics". MetroWire Media. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
  12. ↑ Yang, Steph (June 27, 2022). "Kansas City Current's just-opened training facility hints at a new-look NWSL". The Athletic. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
  13. ↑ "Kansas City NWSL and Port KC Finalize Plans for First NWSL Purpose-Built Stadium at Kansas City Riverfront" (Press release). Kansas City Current. October 26, 2021. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
  14. ↑ "K.C. NWSL owners: Flexibility, control key benefits of privately funded stadium". Sports Business Journal. October 27, 2021. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
  15. 1 2 "New Kansas City Current stadium renderings posted". Soccer Stadium Digest. May 11, 2023. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
  16. ↑ Carlisle, Jeff (June 10, 2022). "Kansas City Current's new NWSL playbook: a $135m investment in the future". ESPN. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
  17. ↑ "K.C. Current stadium project jumps $50M over rising costs, adjustments". Sports Business Journal. May 19, 2022. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
  18. ↑ Stark, Cortlynn (May 20, 2022). "Changing course, KC Current seeks state funds for stadium". The Kansas City Star. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
  19. ↑ Keegan, Charlie (May 2, 2023). "Kansas City Current begins installing grandstands at new stadium". KSHB. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
  20. ↑ "New 3D rendering released, construction on stands begins at new KC Current Stadium". KMBC. May 2, 2023. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
  21. ↑ Chifalu, Nikki Overfelt (March 3, 2023). "Designed by women, for athletes: How the woman-led team behind KC Current's new stadium is 'equalizing the playing field' for women's sports". Starland News. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
  22. ↑ "KC Current Women's Soccer Stadium". Taliaferro & Browne, Inc. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
  23. ↑ Gregorian, Vahe (November 30, 2023). "KC Current naming press box for Grant Wahl is apt, fitting honor for late journalist". Kansas City Star. Retrieved December 2, 2023.
  24. ↑ "Kansas City Current and CPKC Announce Historic Stadium Naming Rights Agreement - Kansas City Current". www.kansascitycurrent.com. October 19, 2023. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
  25. ↑ "Kansas City Current and CPKC Announce Historic Stadium Naming Rights Agreement". Yahoo Finance. October 19, 2023. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
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