November 18, 2013

Dear T-Bones partners and fans:

I am writing today with some exciting news.

Going on twelve years now, CommunityAmerica Ballpark has been known as a community asset. A gathering place for affordable, family-friendly entertainment in the form of T-Bones baseball, as well as hundreds of college, high school, and charitable civic events.

As part of a long-term strategy, we are in the process of selling the ballpark property to the Unified Government of Wyandotte County/Kansas City, Kansas. The T-Bones will continue playing and the venue will proudly retain the CommunityAmerica Ballpark name.

For more than a decade, my family has made a significant investment to establish professional baseball in Wyandotte County. We’re more than thrilled with the fan and sponsor reception—it’s been better than we had dreamed. Thank you for your support. The reality, though, is that private ownership of a specialty, limited-use stadium is not sustainable. So, after this long time of private subsidization, we are now moving to a stronger partnership with our local government.

When we built CommunityAmerica Ballpark in 2002, Kansas state law did not allow for public stadium construction or ownership. That has since changed, and this transaction will put us on a level playing field, so to speak, both locally and nationally (where virtually every stadium or ballpark is municipally owned, and then leased to a team).

This will strengthen the T-Bones’ overall product, and we’re thrilled with the potential. I am tremendously proud of the innovation and dedication of our front office—their efforts have allowed us to compete while bearing this challenging (and singularly unique) business model.

We have always worked well with the Unified Government, but this move will really strengthen the public-private partnership. The T-Bones, in turn will sign a long-term lease to operate in Kansas City, Kansas, in one of the best ballparks in the American Association.

We appreciate your business, and look forward to decades more of “Fun…Well Done!”

Sincerely,

Adam Ehlert
President