New Vikings Stadium

"Metrodome Next" project envisions a new world-class, retractable-roof facility; revitalized neighborhood; and year-round, multi-purpose facility that benefits the entire State

MINNEAPOLIS (April 19, 2007) - The Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission (MSFC) today reviewed the redevelopment potential of the H.H.H. Metrodome site as the location for a new year-round, multi-use, retractable-roof facility that will keep the Vikings in Minnesota through 2041 and can help spur a broader redevelopment of the Downtown East neighborhood around the Metrodome.

Commission staff presented its recommendation in an interim report on redevelopment of the Metrodome stadium site. The report is based on extensive research into current and future stadium costs, ancillary development potential and the program needs of the Minnesota Vikings. The Commission voted unanimously to receive the report and directed staff to continue to move forward toward .

"There is urgency to the question, 'What's next for the Metrodome site?' Our goal is to come up with the right answer," said Roy Terwilliger, Chairman of the MSFC. "We believe a new stadium on the Metrodome site is the right answer because of the benefits it can deliver to the people of Minnesota. We need a year-round, multi-purpose facility in the Twin Cities, one that can attract and host everything from the nine-man football championship to a Women's World Cup Qualifier to the Final Four."

The report received by the Commission estimates that the cost of a new facility constructed on the Metrodome site with a retractable roof will be approximately $954 million and that it would be a positive driver of development beyond the Metrodome site, particularly in conjunction with other factors, such as the naming of a master developer for the area. The report also provides information on stadium projects in other communities.

As part of the meeting, the Commission received a presentation from the ROMA Design Group, which was charged with envisioning how the stadium development could help spur ancillary development in the surrounding neighborhood. Boris Dramov, a world-renowned urban design authority from San Francisco represented ROMA. ROMA has done extensive master planning in San Francisco near AT&T Park (San Francisco Giants) and in San Diego near PETCO Park (San Diego Padres).

The vision of a redeveloped Metrodome site, created by ROMA and the Hoisington Koegler Group of Minneapolis, knits together a redeveloped Downtown East, with the stadium as the anchor, with the surrounding neighborhoods: the Downtown core area, Elliot Park and the Mills waterfront district. The area is further anchored by a "Winter Garden" light rail train station adjacent to the new stadium that is a destination in itself. Their vision is consistent with the City's current master plan.

This vision is compatible with current growth patterns in the area, which suggest that growth in downtown Minneapolis over the next several decades will be to the east of the current core area. The ROMA vision is not to create a new downtown, but to infill the Downtown East area with a new medium-density, mixed-use, live-work neighborhood. It includes:

- The realignment of the downtown area through the creation of new east-west and north-south streetscapes that connect better the downtown core to the Mississippi River and to other neighborhoods
- Adaptive reuse of historic buildings
- A stadium design that provides a new "front door" to the City, a continually active plaza and new development opportunities on the stadium site
- An enhanced transit hub with a Winter Garden that will feature destination entertainment and an intermodal facility, completing the City's front door and providing an additional catalyst for Downtown East redevelopment
- A new in-town "live-work" neighborhood
- A revitalized Chicago Avenue
- The extension of Washington Avenue redevelopment to the east to forge a connection with the Riverfront and Mills districts.

"Today, we saw a vision for what can be next - a world-class, retractable-roof stadium that can make Minnesota a year-round host to major events - and a driver for development that enhances our quality of life. We have the opportunity to secure the benefits of an NFL franchise and those of a year-round, multi-use facility for the next 30 years," Terwilliger said.

Financial Considerations

The estimated cost of a new, retractable-roof multi-purpose stadium on the existing Metrodome site is approximately $954 million. This cost estimate is in line with the projected costs of similar stadium projects that have been built or are currently in the planning phases such as:

*Location*		*Type*	Cost*
Detroit (2002)	Fixed Roof New		$471 million
Seattle (2002)	Open Air New		$465 million
Chicago (2003)	Open Air Renovation		$590 million
Glendale (2006)	Retractable Roof New		$458 million
Indianapolis (2008)	Retractable Roof New		$675 million
Dallas (2009)	Retractable Roof New		$932 million
New York (2010)	Open Air New		$1.7 billion
* Costs are published figures based on time-of-construction dollars; program elements may vary.

Item	Cost
Stadium Hard and Soft Costs		$616,564,000,
Retractable roof		$200,729,000
Parking development		$58,130,000
Land cost of 5th Street right of way		$8,892,000
Escalation to early 2010 construction start		$69,601,000
Total Project Cost		$953,916,000

A significant advantage of the current site is that it uses existing infrastructure in the form of roadways, access ramps, surface streets, parking ramps, transit lines and stations, sewer, power and telecommunications, an infrastructure worth "billions of dollars," according to SRF Consulting Group, an infrastructure planning firm. Duplicating this infrastructure in a suburban location would add hundreds of millions of dollars to the cost of a comparable project.

Beyond the inclusion of existing infrastructure and a substantial investment by the Vikings, the assumption is that the balance of the redeveloped alternative will be paid with public monies. The staff believes that the redevelopment option offers the best alternative that will serve the State for decades to come.

"For 25 years, our State has been well-served by the Metrodome, but it no longer meets the needs of the Vikings and the NFL, or the expectations of sports fans in terms of amenities or fan experience. Now is the time to secure these benefits for our next generation," Terwilliger said. "In three years, the Minnesota Vikings will be the only major sports team playing in the Metrodome, and its use agreement with the facility expires in 2011. We look forward to the opportunity to discuss these recommendations and to move the public debate forward on what will be an important investment for the future of our quality of life in Minnesota."

We are 100% Purple Pride Viking fans. The Vikings and Twins (as well as the other Minnesota sports teams) have always been part of the "common community ground" that we have all shared together in Minnesota. Most of us, when we get together, begin with our common enjoyment of our teams, "breaking the ice" with our "Minnesota nice" takes on the Vikes and Twins (and sometimes the Timberwolves) and then we get on with the rest of our stories about other things we have to do (work, family, projects, neighborhood, etc., whatever it may be.

We are totally independent of the Vikings and any of their organizations. However, we invite the Vikings, owners, coaches and players alike, and all other Minnesotans to join with us in working out a solution together which will work to the benefit of all the people (local fans who are the taxpayers) of Minnesota. large and small businesses impacted directly and indirectly by the Vikings, the Governor, the state legislators and the fans of the Vikings worldwide.

QUITE SIMPLY: WE DON'T WANT TO LOSE THE VIKINGS. But as Bob Dylan sang, "The times, they are a changin."

The Vikings have NOT changed. Football has NOT changed. The enjoyment and community camaraderie we get has NOT changed. The many common community and business and personal benefits we get have NOT changed. BUT! THE FINANCIAL ENVIRONMENT and related to that, the THE PHYSICAL PLAYING FIELDS (now called "venues"), HAVE changed. For a crisp analysis of the situation that best explains why we are at risk of losing our team see the cover story on the financial environment of the NFL and the crucial role played by the stadiums, in the September 20, 1999 Forbes Magazine.

If we want to keep the Vikings we have to adjust to the new reality that professional sports is now both big business and big entertainment.

BUT! It can still be a happy public-private partnership, just as the one which developed the Metrodome and paid it off 14 years early. We can develop a similar model with the Vikings.

We want to have a great season every year. Both national magazines and our own local newspapers have underscored the fact that our current stadium situation limits our ability to do two critical things, FIRST, run the business franchise profitably, and SECOND, field a competitive team -- the kind of team our fans demand and Red McCombs is committed to putting on the field. And. in Minnesota, we have the quality of life many players would like to enjoy for themselves and their families.

But the fact remains that the business of professional football is changing, and, as stated by the previous owners, the Vikings need a new stadium if the Vikings are to keep pace with the rest of the league. In 1999 the Vikings will fall $11 million below the league average in total revenues. But costs remain above that. Without a new stadium that can provide the same (and additional) revenue sources other teams enjoy, that gap will get wider every year. Soon, the Vikings will no be able to generate the revenues needed to operate the team.

Yes. We're fortunate to play in a financially healthy league that works to ensure smaller-market teams like the Vikings have a chance to compete. And although the bulk of shared revenues come from national broadcasting rights, and each NFL team gets the same amount each year, additional revenues are needed to keep pace with the escalating operating costs, which can only be achieved with a new stadium. The shared revenue scheme has not leveled the playing field. The larger markets have built stadiums which can generate home town revenues for the team. Minnesota does not have that. To field any team let alone the Vikings, teams have to have the new type stadiums.

We believe that by working together, we can develop a new financial model which will satisfy the owners who need to make a profit, the taxpayers who don't want to subsidize millionaires, the small businesses and others who profit from the games, and, of course the fans for whom the Vikings have long been a cherished part of their lives. We are inviting all the key players in the debate both for and against a new stadium to join with us in working to put our heads together to create a new financial paradigm that works for Minnesota and in turn works for the Vikings which means it will work for the fans.

Unfortunately, shared revenue is only one part of the equation. 21st century profitability will be based on Non-shared revenues which will come primarily from stadium sources such as concessions, parking, suites, club seats, advertising and any other activities which a team can develop and use to generate revenue. In 1999, these revenues will vary greatly from team to team, and the Vikings will rank near the bottom of the league.

The salary cap helps teams like the Vikings compete for star players by putting a ceiling on the total amount teams can pay players. But the salary cap is tied to the average NFL team revenue and it will rise as the average team revenue rises. Without new stadium revenue sources, the Vikings will fall further below average and will be faced with a tough choice: pay up to the salary cap and lose money, or pay below the cap and lose star players.

This rank position seriously limits the Vikings revenue opportunities. The Vikings rank at or near the bottom among all NFL teams when it comes to important stadium revenue sources like concessions, parking, suites, club seats and advertising.

Because of shorfalls in every stadium revenue category, The Vikings are projected to rank 30th out of 31 teams in the NFL in total revenue for 1999. This is unlikely to improve without a new stadium.

We also want a facility that better serves fans. More people than ever are looking for a way to attend a Viking game. Naturally it is wonderful that the Vikings have sold out of season tickets for the 1999 season and that there is a waiting list for the first time in Metrodome history. To cover the growing need, more seats are needed. The Vikings also need to offer better accommodations -- more restrooms, more concession areas, wider concourses -- so fans no longer have to choose at half-time between the restroom and a snack.

The Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission recently issued thoughtful proposals for renovating the Metrodome for both football and baseball.

After a hard look and careful consideration it has been determined that a renovated Metrodome is not an acceptable solution for the Vikings. First, it cannot provide space for both more seats and more fan accommodations. Second, it cannot provide enough revenue-generating opportunities to improve the team's financial picture and allow the Vikings to compete with the rest of the league. In addition, by the time the renovation would be completed, the Metrodome would be nearly 25 years old, and maintenance costs would continue to rise.

While the Metrodome is no longer a viable NFL facility in terms of revenues, capacity and fan accommodations, it is a good example of a successful private/public partnership. The stadium's debt was retired 14 years ahead of schedule and we believe it's time to reinvest in a new facility.

We believe that there are enough examples out there to provide Minnesota with a model which will work for all concerned, from the taxpayers, that is all citizens, to the legislators trying to develop a public-private partnership that will satisfy all, to the owners who will need to show a profit, to the coaches who need to develop a competitive team, to the players on the field, and to the fans in the stands and watching on TV and listening to the radio.

As fans, we're thinking football. We have also geared up for an exciting 1999 season. At the same time, we would like to begin a conversation about the next home for Minnesota Viking football. We believe there is a stadium solution that will benefit not only the team, by also fans and the state of Minnesota. We are committed, cooperatively to "Creating a solution to continue a tradition."

We invite you to submit your suggestions. We will sift through the suggestions as we continue to develop our own research, with the goal to come up with a means and mechanism to achieve a win-win "conflict resolution" for all sides concerned.

VIKINGS SAY THEY ARE STILL IN THE STADIUM GAME
November 4, 1999
Copyright 1999 MediaVentures

Depite voter rejection of a new ballpark for the Minnesota Twins, the NFL Vikings say they will still press their case for a new stadium. Team officials are scheduled to meet with Minneapolis and Hennepin County leaders soon to update them on the team's situation.

The team is considering a new $400 million stadium and will contribute $100 million to the project. That means the rest of the funding must come from the city, county and/or state.

VIKINGS LOOK AT NEW FINANCING OPTIONS
September 18, 2008
Copyright 2008 MediaVentures

Minneapolis, Minn. - After spending two days meeting with executives from the Indianapolis Colts and getting a tour of the brand-new Lucas Oil Stadium in downtown Indianapolis, it appears the Vikings are hoping the solution can involve hospitality taxes.

"That's up to the Legislature and the governor to determine what's the best package of taxes to solve the issue," said Lester Bagley, the Vikings vice president of public affairs and stadium development. "We're not there yet.

"We're working on some finance options, along with the sports commission, but we're not ready to lay those out yet." Team owner Zygi Wilf plans to contribute $250 million to the project. What the Vikings learned in their meetings with the Colts was that public funding to help build the retractable-roofed Lucas Oil Stadium included increases of 3 percent for a county hotel tax, 2 percent for a county rental car tax, and 1 percent for a six-county restaurant tax and county admission tax.

The Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission is scheduled this week to select one of four architectural firms to work on the design for a stadium. Candidates include Minneapolis-based Ellerbe Becket; Kansas City-based HOK Sports; 360 Architecture, of Kansas City, and Dallas-based HKS, which worked on the Colts stadium.

Bagley said that once the design for a stadium is in place, a price can be set. Now, the estimate for a Vikings stadium stands at $954 million, but that amount includes a roof, so the facility can be used year-round and attract events such as a Super Bowl or NCAA Final Four. Without a roof - and the Vikings have said they don't need one - it would cost $750 million. (Star Tribune)

GOODELL SAYS VIKINGS STADIUM A PRIORITY
February 5, 2009
Copyright 2009 MediaVentures

Minneapolis, Minn. - Roger Goodell did not make any threats about the Vikings leaving Minnesota if they don't get a new stadium, but the NFL commissioner did express some urgency when asked about the team's situation at the Metrodome.

"I know [owners] Zygi Wilf and Mark Wilf want to continue to have the Minnesota Vikings in Minnesota in a new stadium and I share that," Goodell said during his state of the NFL address in Tampa, Fla. "They have worked very hard to be able to get to that point. They have understood the priorities of the community, they have stood by and they've allowed the baseball stadium and the Gophers [football] stadium to move forward because they recognize those priorities and there are always priorities in the community.

"I think we have to continue to work with the governor and the leadership in that community to understand those priorities and figure out how we get a new stadium built. That is necessary for the Vikings. We all want the Vikings to be there in the long term, successfully. They need a new stadium, that's clear. I think it's recognized by all parties and we need to get down to the difficult business of figuring out how to do it."

The Vikings, who are last in the league in revenue playing in the Metrodome, have a lease that expires after the 2011 season. The team is hoping to get the stadium issue before the Legislature, but that could be a difficult battle considering the state's $4.8 billion budget deficit.

Although the exact financial figures have yet to be set, estimates to date have been that a Vikings stadium would cost about $954 million. Wilf has said the ownership group would contribute $250 million toward the project.

There is talk about an NFL team ending up at a privately financed $800 million stadium in Industry, Calif., that billionaire real estate developer Ed Roski Jr. wants to build. The Vikings, Chargers and Jaguars also have been mentioned as possible candidates.

"Many people view the Vikings as a viable candidate to relocate to the Los Angeles market due to the lack of action on our stadium front," said Lester Bagley, vice president of public affairs and stadium development for the Vikings. "But we are focused on and committed to resolving the issue here in Minnesota." (Star Tribune)

VIKINGS SAY THEY'RE COMMITTED TO MINNESOTA
February 12, 2009
Copyright 2009 MediaVentures

Minneapolis, Minn. - The Minnesota Vikings continue to rebuff feelers from California billionaire Ed Roski Jr., who would like to build a privately financed stadium in the Los Angeles area and lure an NFL team to play there, according to Vikings executive Lester Bagley.

The Vikings want public financing to carry most of the cost to build a new stadium in downtown Minneapolis, at the current site of the Metrodome. Vikings owner Zygi Wilf has said in the past that the ownership group is willing to contribute about $250 million toward a stadium projected to cost about $954 million, although the final tally hasn't been set.

Bagley, Vikings vice president of public affairs/stadium development, continues to emphasize the sense of urgency to build a new stadium, saying a plan is in place that would allow construction to start in August.

"We have 30 games left (including exhibitions) at the Metrodome," Bagley said, referring to the lease that expires after the 2011 season. "The issue isn't what the Wilfs will or won't do. It's that other NFL owners and other potential NFL markets and potential owners will come after this team.

If you let the market work, it's not going to be a favorable outcome for the Twin Cities in terms of the long-term future for the club."

The group led by Roski, a real estate developer, has been in contact with the Vikings since last summer. But the Vikings contend they are focused on a stadium in the Twin Cities.

"They check in periodically," Bagley said. "They want to meet with our ownership. I haven't heard anything in the last few weeks. But we basically said our guys are not ready to talk to them.

We've got issues to resolve here. We've still got time. Our product's ready to go."

Gov. Tim Pawlenty hasn't shown much interest in discussing the stadium project, Bagley said. Said Pawlenty's spokesman, Brian McClung: "The governor recognizes that the Vikings bring a lot of enjoyment to a large number of Minnesotans. He's also said this year we're facing a nearly $5 billion budget deficit. The activity at the legislature is largely focused on balancing the state's budget and trying to position the state for future economic growth."

The Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission will address legislators during this current session and emphasize the urgency regarding the Vikings' stadium push, Bagley said, although there's no specific date set. (Star Tribune)

GAMING MAY HELP FUND STADIUM FOR VIKES
March 12, 2009
Copyright 2009 MediaVentures

Minneapolis, Minn. - Two hot-button issues at the State Capitol - gambling and a new stadium for the Minnesota Vikings - came together in new legislation that proposed using revenue from a new Twin Cities metro casino to build the much-discussed stadium.

Saying his constituents were adamant about not wanting the Vikings to leave Minnesota, Rep. Tom Hackbarth said his plan would propose a constitutional amendment, asking voters in 2010 whether revenues from a new casino should be used to finance a new stadium. Hackbarth said bonds would be issued to finance the stadium's construction - work would begin almost immediately if the amendment passed in November 2010 - and the Vikings would have to sign at least a 30-year lease and enlist a local government partner to help bring about the project. State legislators, and even the Vikings, were cool to the idea.

"We're not advocating for a gaming situation," said Lester Bagley, a spokesman for the Vikings, who have been searching unsuccessfully for a way to kick-start debate on a stadium at the Legislature.

"[But] if that's what the state leaders want to use," Bagley added, "then let's sit down. At least someone is thinking creatively."

Brian McClung, a spokesman for Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty, said the governor "has said that he isn't interested in gaming." In the past, Pawlenty has had mixed reactions to gambling expansion proposals.

The legislation also was not embraced by Bill Lester, executive director of the Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission. The commission owns the Metrodome, where the Vikings have played for more than a quarter century and where the team has a lease to play through 2011. The commission, which has essentially been advocating for a new stadium, said a new study showed that a stadium would create 13,400 jobs while it was being built and generate $32.2 million in taxes during its first year.

"As far as the gaming, we've never endorsed that as a particular solution," he said. "That would be outside of the purview of our authority." (Star Tribune)

FARVE MAY HELP VIKES REVENUES, BUT NOT STADIUM PLANS
August 20, 2009
Copyright 2009 MediaVentures

Minneapolis, Minn. - The addition of Brett Farve as the Minnesota Vikings' new quarterback back help the team's bottom line, but the move isn't likely to change civic leaders' opinions about funding a new stadium for the team.

The Vikings, whose lease at the 27-year-old Metrodome expires after the 2011 season, are seeking a new home. The Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission, which owns the Dome, has proposed a $954 million retractable-roof stadium on the Dome's downtown Minneapolis site. Team owner Zygi Wilf has offered to pay $250 million of the project.

But so far, Pawlenty and the Legislature have not seriously considered financing a new Vikings stadium.

"I think ... the Vikings are really important to the state of Minnesota," Gov. Tim Pawlenty said. "They bring people a lot of fun and a lot of joy. But we have to set priorities and put first things first.

"And so with the recession and all the budget challenges in the country and that Minnesota is facing, I don't think we could turn to the taxpayers and say, 'Now we need you to pay for a billion-dollar Vikings stadium.'"

He said he wants to keep the Vikings in Minnesota and acknowledged they eventually will need a new stadium. But he asserted this is not the time to build it.

Fans, however, are more excited. Shortly after the team made the announcement that Farve would be coming out of retirement to lead the team, the box office sold 2,500 season tickets. The sale far surpassed the team's previous record for single-day season ticket sales.

The Vikings have sold 8,000 single-game tickets, but team officials emphasized that no game - including the Vikings' Oct. 5 game against Favre's longtime team, the rival Green Bay Packers - has been sold out. In fact, with the exception of the Packers game, about 8,000 tickets remain for the Vikings' other seven home games.

Last year, more than 200,000 New York Jets Favre jerseys were sold, ranking among the most in the NFL.

VIKINGS TO RENEW PUSH FOR NEW STADIUM
October 1, 2009
Copyright 2009 MediaVentures

Minneapolis, Minn. - The Minnesota Vikings are about to ramp up their push to get state legislators to help them build a $954 million, retractable-roof stadium to replace the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome.

"If the answer is no," Vikings vice president for public affairs and stadium development Lester Bagley told the St. Paul Pioneer Press, "then why would you own a team in this market?"

The team and the sports facilities commission will begin laying out their case to the House Commerce Committee in an economic impact report. The report will suggest that the Metrodome needs the Vikings, which supply $6.7 million of the venue�s $15 million annual budget.

The Vikings say they will invest $250 million in the project, leaving the state to find $700 million.

While many legislators are sympathetic to the team�s problems, they also are facing a deficit of up to $6 billion. Gov. Tim Pawlenty says the state has higher priorities.

Though incomplete, a facilities commission study estimates that reconstructing the Metrodome would cost $954 million, with about $200 million going to a retractable roof. The new stadium would be owned and operated by the commission and continue to play host to community events.

The facility would meet all NFL guidelines on capacity, suites and premium seating, and the Vikings would sign a 30-year lease.

The team says it's ready to kick in about one-third of the cost - although that's a little deceiving. The Vikings say they don't need a roof and aren't enthusiastic about helping to pay for one. Bagley said the team could build a high-end NFL stadium, with no roof, for $650 million.

SLOT MACHINES SUGGESTED TO FUND VIKINGS' STADIUM
October 8, 2009
Copyright 2009 MediaVentures

Minneapolis, Minn. - Rep. Tom Hackbarth wants to allow Minnesota's two horse tracks to install slot machines and use tax money from the devices to help fund a new stadium for the Vikings. The issue could come before the state�s legislature in February.

He said his constituents have told him they don't want taxpayer money to finance the stadium and they don't want to lose the Vikings, who are under lease at the Metrodome through the 2011 season, to another city.

If the Legislature passes Hackbarth's proposal, the question would be put on the 2010 general election ballot. If it's approved, and once stadium costs are covered, future proceeds would go directly into the general fund, according to Hackbarth.

The slot machines would be allowed at Canterbury Park in Shakopee and Running Aces Harness Park in Columbus, just north of the Twin Cities.

COMMISSION TO PRESS ITS CASE WITH VIKINGS
December 3, 2009
Copyright 2009 MediaVentures

Minneapolis, Minn. - The Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission has agreed to press its case with the Minnesota Vikings to accept incentives to remain in the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome rather than continue its campaign to fund a new stadium.

The commission, which owns the Metrodome and is the team's current landlord, made the move in the face of a blistering letter from Vikings owners Zygi and Mark Wilf that said the proposal to extend their Dome lease left them "confused and questioning the future of this franchise."

True to their pledge to suspend relations with the commission until the "political games" ended, neither Wilf attended the commission's meeting.

But Vikings spokesman and Vice President Lester Bagley, addressing the Twin Cities North Chamber of Commerce, said that the team will continue to push for a new stadium - with or without the stadium commission.

The commission, in a five-page resolution, promised the Vikings all post-season stadium receipts if they would extend their Dome lease beyond the current expiration in 2011. But it also threatened to resume charging the team annual rent of $4 million (after 10 years of playing in the Dome rent-free) if the team rejected an extension. The commission also wants the Vikings to match its own $500,000 funding for a 2010 study on redeveloping the Metrodome site.

The team has two years left on its Metrodome lease after this season, and Metrodome officials believe there is no way the Legislature will act on a stadium in 2010 while dealing with severe economic problems.

Brian McClung, a spokesman for Gov. Tim Pawlenty, said the Vikings are an important state asset "but with the state continuing to face difficult economic circumstances the stadium issue is not on the front burner."

But the Vikings are betting heavily on a stadium solution in the upcoming session. Team officials have been courting the support of business leaders and talking to citizens about the economic benefits that a new stadium would deliver and the need to act now.

There were some signs that the Vikings and the commission may not be that far apart. In the past, the team has resisted an enclosed stadium; the commission, on the other hand, has insisted that a new stadium include a roof to ensure that it can be used year-round. Bagley acknowledged the possibility of a roof five times during his lunch presentation.

VIKINGS UNMOVED BY COMMISSION'S STADIUM DRAWINGS
December 24, 2009
Copyright 2009 MediaVentures

Minneapolis, Minn. - The Minnesota Vikings preferred not to take part in a showing of plans by the Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission for a new stadium, saying they are focused on other locations.

The commission wants to build a new stadium where the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome now stands and has offered the team incentives to extend its lease while financing is worked out in the legislature. The team believes the legislature needs to act now and that it�s not wise to extend the lease past 2011.

HKS, which designed recently completed retractable-roof football stadiums in Dallas and Indianapolis, presented a plan for a 1.5-million-square-foot building that would seat 65,000 fans, feature all-digital signage and use an active-passive system to heat and cool the structure.

The building wouldn't be a dome. Instead, it would look something like a huge Chautauqua tent with a peaked roof rising toward downtown.

The stadium would be covered in Teflon-treated fabric similar to the Metrodome bubble, except that it would be held up with cables rather than air. A trapezoidal-shaped transparent roof would slide off the top and down onto the side of the building when the weather was nice enough to go open-air.

HKS architect Bryan Trubey said the facility could host events ranging from high school football playoff games to the Super Bowl, from motor races to political conventions.

Originally assuming a price of $954 million, John Wood, of Mortenson Construction, estimated the stadium cost at $870 million if construction begins next fall - a savings of $84 million, because the recession has dried up demand for materials, lowering costs, he said. But a one-year delay in construction could cost an extra $51 million, he said.

If construction began next year, Wood said, the Vikings could play one more season in the Metrodome before the old structure would have to be demolished. Under this scenario, the team would play two seasons at the University of Minnesota�s TCF Bank Stadium before kicking off at the new stadium in the fall of 2013.

The commission also reviewed a study by Conventions, Sports and Leisure that estimated a renovated Dome, with more suites and wider concourses, would cost $967.4 million. A reconstructed stadium built around a portion of the existing Metrodome would cost $771.7 million. And an all-new facility would fall in between, at $870 million.

Craig Skiem, CSL's president, said the Vikings would pull in $31.5 million more a year in either a reconstructed or new stadium - what it would take, he said, for the team to climb out of its self-described low spot on the NFL revenue scale.

VIKINGS LOOK TO SUBURBS FOR STADIUM SITE
January 14, 2010
Copyright 2009 MediaVentures

Minneapolis, Minn. - The Vikings are so put off by the Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission�s efforts to keep the team that they are talking with suburban communities about possible stadium sites.

Team officials say they have been approached by communities interested in hosting the team, including Anoka County where the team invested time in developing a plan and promoting it to the legislature.

"Over the next 30 to 60 days we'll start to see this play out," said Lester Bagley, the team�s stadium project chief. "Right now, there is a lot of good work going on. As we get into the (legislative) session and into the spring, these things will surface in due time, at the appropriate time."

The biggest advantage any site can offer right now is a financing mechanism similar to the 0.75 percent sales tax proposed by Anoka County, or the 0.15 percent sales tax Hennepin County used to fund more than half of the Twins' new $550 million ballpark. That's a disadvantage for Minneapolis, which has a $10 million cap on tax money that can be used for a stadium, and is situated in a county already imposing a tax for the Twins' Target Field.

The rift between the Vikings and the commission came after a request that the Vikings sign a two-year lease extension through the 2013 season. The team claims it is being coerced into signing a lease extension through 2013, and that if it doesn't, the commission will reinstate a $4 million lease bill that has been waived the past 10 years.

Officials say the "clawback" would only be triggered only if the team moved or was sold during the extra two years of the lease.

The Vikings have begun working with legislators on funding for a stadium, saying action must be taken during this session. Legislators, faced with their own budget challenges, say now is not the team to put money into a stadium.

FEDERAL FUNDS MAY HELP BUILD VIKINGS STADIUM
January 28, 2010
Copyright 2009 MediaVentures

Minneapolis, Minn. - If the Minnesota legislature decides to take on construction of a new stadium for the Vikings, there may be some federal stimulus funds available to help pay for the project.

Vikings' spokesman Lester Bagley told a real estate gathering in Minneapolis that private developers and local government officials have also approached the team about a half dozen potential Twin Cities suburban sites. Bagley would not say where, but some signs pointed to Dayton, near Interstate 94 in western Hennepin County, as a possible home.

To help finance the deal, the Vikings are exploring federal Build America Bonds, along with a possible 2 percent increase in the hospitality tax across the seven-county metro area.

Bagley's comments were the first public signs of a tentative blueprint for how the team might assemble a public financing package at the Legislature, which convenes in two weeks.

Bagley said the federal bonds could provide up to $1 million a year to help make interest payments on a stadium, which is projected to cost $870 million.

Minnesota's top state budget official, Tom Hanson, who spoke to the same group, said state officials have not used the bond program and that any proposal � including one from the Vikings - would need legislative approval.

Kathy Kardell, an assistant commissioner under Hanson at the Minnesota Management and Budget Office, said a study would be needed to determine whether a Vikings stadium could be defined as a "governmental purpose" under federal tax law. Southern Illinois University last year used Build America Bonds to help finance a new 15,000-seat football stadium and help expand its basketball arena.

Kardell said agency officials have been asked by representatives from Gov. Tim Pawlenty's office to investigate other possible bonding strategies, but most had been discarded as unworkable.

Although no one financing proposal would by itself pay for the stadium, Bagley said all were being explored as part of a public subsidy package.

Bagley said that an increase in the hospitality tax, similar to what was used in the late 1970s and '80s to finance the Metrodome could generate another $15 million annually.

That, he said, could be added to the Vikings' push to divert the estimated $20 million they say the team generates yearly in sales taxes.

Team officials said diverting that money, plus the addition of new tax revenue, could equal the estimated $29 million to $42 million annually that would be needed for the project.

MINNESOTA MAYOR OFFERS IDEA ON VIKINGS' STADIUM
February 4, 2010
Copyright 2009 MediaVentures

Minneapolis, Minn. - Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty has suggested that a new state lottery game could provide $12 million to help fund a new stadium for the Vikings. While Pawlenty said he was not specifically proposing such a funding plan, he said lottery funds could be part of a public subsidy package that would generate the $29 million to $42 million annually that team officials say would be needed for a stadium.

"If you look at the Minnesota Lottery, for example, there's new games added all the time in the lottery," Pawlenty told a radio audience. "There was one just added the other day called Mega Millions that's going to generate $20 million a year," the governor said.

Although 40 percent of those funds - $ 8 million - is constitutionally dedicated to an environmental trust fund, "the other $12 [million] can be used for other stuff. People will say it should go into schools or roads or whatever, but ... that's another way to do [the stadium]."

The governor's comments signal that Pawlenty may be moving closer to brokering a proposal even as the Legislature convenes to grapple with a $1.2 billion shortfall. They also show that stadium proponents, who have been working largely behind the scenes, are sorting through a series of public subsidies that include a metrowide hospitality tax and federal stimulus money.

One particularly novel element that Pawlenty offered: a pumped up version of tax increment financing, a complex financing tool that typically has allowed developers to divert their property taxes to develop their properties.

The Vikings have examined a variation that would allow them to capture not only the increase in their property taxes, but also the rise in a broad array of tax revenue they would generate, including income taxes paid by players. They would then use that money to help pay for a stadium, which has an estimated $870 million price tag.

Vikings spokesman Lester Bagley said the team had also explored the tax benefits of creating a stadium development district to capture the rise in "all of the economic activity." The Vikings, who have played in the Metrodome since 1982, have said they will not renew their lease when it expires in 2011.