The game of chicken between the Kansas City Chiefs and state government has yet to scare away potential builders of a summer training camp facility in St. Joseph.

Contractors are lining up for the project at Missouri Western State University, even though the funding could remain frozen at the groundbreaking, which is a month away.

“There has been an incredible amount of interest in the plans,” said Dave Williams, Western’s athletic director.

About 18 contractors have picked up plans for the indoor practice facility, and Western already has received 16 letters of qualifications, Mr. Williams said.

In comparison, bids for construction at Agenstein Hall on Western’s campus — part of the Lewis and Clark Discovery Initiative — only generated about six bids.

Bid opening for the training facility is slated for the week of June 11. The university will award a bid soon after, and then construction is supposed to start July 1.

The aggressive timeline comes amid a threat from Gov. Jay Nixon’s administration to sit on the money the Missouri Development Finance Board authorized for the Chiefs this winter unless the team commits to 10 summers at Western. The board approved $25 million in tax credits for the Chiefs, who pledged to donate $10 million to Western for the practice building.

The Chiefs and Western have agreed to a five-year contract plus five one-year renewable options, which is in line with a letter of intent and public announcements from the team.

But Missouri Department of Economic Development officials contend there’s a discrepancy between that five-year agreement and what the board approved. An economic impact study presented to the board was based on a 10-year commitment, and board documents point to the Chiefs’ commitment to Western for “a minimum of 10 years.”

The Department of Economic Development’s consistent stance this spring has been that it won’t release the $25 million in tax credits the Chiefs want for infrastructure improvements to Arrowhead Stadium, unless the team commits to stage its summer camp at Western for 10 straight years. So far, the Chiefs haven’t relented.

As the construction start date approaches, talks between the Chiefs and the state have all but come to a standstill.

“Our department still looks forward to a conclusion of the deal that the Missouri Development Finance Board voted on last December,” said John Fougere, an economic development department spokesman. In the meantime, Western is continuing as if the money will come through.

Asked what the university’s plan was if the money isn’t released by July 1, Mr. Williams said, “At this point, we can’t think that way. We can’t afford to think that way.”

A Chiefs spokesman didn’t return a phone call from the News-Press.

Alyson E. Raletz can be reached

at alysonraletz@npgco.com.