With seven weeks until Election Day, the campaign for a
new Twins ballpark in St. Paul is "marked by appeals to the
pride of St. Paul residents ... and their love for outdoor
baseball -- with a dash of Minneapolis bashing for good
measure," according to Kevin Duchschere of the Minneapolis
STAR TRIBUNE. Voters will be asked to approve a half-
percent sales tax to fund the city's third of the proposed
$325M ballpark, and St. Paul Mayor Norm Coleman has "zeroed
in on the economic benefits to the city rather than the
region and said that the ballpark is St. Paul's chance to
become a 'world-class city.'" A "parochial flavor also
permeates the first series of ads and direct-mail pieces
distributed by the Yes! Saint Paul Campaign." The ads have
appeared in newspapers and mailboxes. The city of
Minneapolis "takes a few jabs" in the campaign, as one ad
describes the area around the Metrodome as "Domed
Wasteland," and a direct-mail piece headline reads,
"Minneapolis can throw all the insults across the river they
want, we'll just throw baseballs" (STAR TRIBUNE, 9/12). A
pro-ballpark "neighbor-to-neighbor" strategy will include
"block parties featuring Twins players as guests and citizen
persuasion clubs called High and Outsiders." In St. Paul,
Aron Kahn wrote, "Private polls show voters are solidly
against the stadium plan" (ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS, 9/11).
SOMETHING WILD: In MN, Brown & Weiner reported that the
"best bet" is that the new Twins owners "will be many of the
same wealthy men who paid millions" to purchase the Wild.
Wild CEO Jac Sperling said that other Wild investors "might
balk at becoming baseball owners," although "new investors
might come aboard for a baseball deal." But Sperling added,
"If there is not a new ballpark, we would not be interested
or involved." Former Twins VP Clark Griffith "remains
interested" in the Twins, the "expected" sale price for
which could be between $110-120M (STAR-TRIBUNE, 9/12).
