MN Senate Republicans "declared that most of their 24
members support" putting slot machines at Canterbury Park to
help finance a new Twins ballpark, according to Whereatt &
Weiner in the Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE. GOP members said
that the use of slot machines "would not constitute an
expansion of gambling." Senate Minority Leader Dean
Johnson: "This is the only sensible solution to building an
outdoor baseball stadium without using general tax
revenues." Thirty-four votes are necessary for the bill to
pass in the Senate. The plan will be one of "dozens of
proposals" introduced today at a joint hearing of the Senate
and House tax committees (Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 4/30).
An editorial in today's STAR TRIBUNE: "Keeping major-league
baseball in Minnesota is important -- but not so important
that the Legislature should resort to socially destructive
means to accomplish that end. ... the state doesn't need to
build its new taxpayer-owned ballpark on the backs of the
compulsive gamblers" (Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 4/30).
NO DEAL? Twins Owner Carl Pohlad told MN Senate
sponsors of a bill for a new Twins ballpark that he "doesn't
want to contribute" $50M in up-front cash to the project.
He agreed to contribute $15M, but a MN House committee
amended that contribution to $50M (STAR TRIBUNE, 4/29).
