MN Gov. Arne Carlson says he will ask the legislature to put
an initiative on the November '96 ballot to determine if metro-
area voters want to pay for a new ballpark for the club.  The
Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE reports Carlson's request follows a task
force study which concluded that "the retention" of the Twins
will require "either additional revenue streams in the Metrodome
or a new stadium."  Paul Thatcher, Finance Chair for the
Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission:  "I profoundly believe
if we don't build a new stadium we will lose baseball."  The
Twins can exercise an escape clause at the Metrodome after the
'97 season (Weiner & Whereatt, Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 12/22).

     The Giants announced plans yesterday to build the first
privately financed baseball park in more than 30 years at San
Francisco's China Basin.  The 42,000-seat facility is scheduled
to open April 2000.  The Giants will be responsible for $140M of
financing, with remaining capital from concession rights,
advertising, business partners, and a limited number of premium
seat commitments.  The team will lease the site from the Port of
San Francisco.  If voters decide in March the site is acceptable,
construction will begin in late '97 (Giants).  A key element of
the financing will be the sale of 15,000 PSLs, from which the
owners expect to raise $35M (Seligman & Brazil, S.F. EXAMINER,
12/21).  The ballpark will have 63 luxury suites, 5,200 club
seats and 1,500 special field seats located on ground level
between home plate and the dugouts (S.F. CHRONICLE, 12/22).

     Houston Mayor Bob Lanier and Rockets Owner Leslie Alexander
have begun negotiations for a new downtown arena, according to
sources cited by the HOUSTON CHRONICLE.  Though no deal has been
struck, the two have been discussing a $100M 18-24,000-seat arena
near the George Brown Center.  Public funding, money from
Alexander, and arena revenue would help pay for the arena (John
Williams, HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 12/22).

     Construction engineers in Tampa now say the new state-of-
the-art stadium Malcolm Glazer wants to keep the Bucs' in town
will cost $192M, $24M more than originally estimated.  (ST.
PETERSBURG TIMES, 12/22)....Supporters of a new baseball stadium
in Tucson demand the City Council decide within 30 days whether
to kick in a combined $18M for the project.  The city is trying
to lure a third MLB club to join the Rockies and Diamondbacks in
holding spring training there  (AP/Colorado Springs GAZETTE
TELEGRAPH, 12/21).

     IL Gov. Jim Edgar, who had pledged support for Chicago Mayor
Richard Daley's plan to reconstruct Soldier Field, now believes a
multipurpose domed stadium at McCormick Place "would be a plus
for the city of Chicago."  According to the CHICAGO TRIBUNE,
Edgar's "abrupt shift" over McDome comes on the heels of a
breakdown in talks between the Bears and the city over the $156M
improvement.  Edgar suggested the same Daley-backed tourism taxes
used to expand the McCormick Place exhibition center in 1991
could be used to build McDome.  Daley argues taxpayers ewer
burdened enough by the original $1B expansion (Pearson & Kass,
CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 12/22).