Ramsey County (Minn.) Commissioner Rafael Ortega Thursday said the county and the Vikings are "very very close" to reaching an agreement to build a stadium in Arden Hills, according to Dave Orrick of the ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS. Road improvements to "get tens of thousands of fans in and out of the largely roadless Arden Hills site appear to be the final notable obstacle before the team and Ramsey County can announce an agreement." Ortega: "We have a few i's to dot and t's to cross. The big nut to crack, so to speak, is the transportation issue." Orrick notes "key players," including Vikings Owner Zygi Wilf, on Thursday "huddled around maps and other highway documents in the state Transportation Building." Vikings VP/Public Affairs & Stadium Development Lester Bagley said that the team "likes the Arden Hills location but the cost of transportation improvements must be addressed." Bagley: "We're trying to resolve this transportation issue so we can stand up and say, 'We've got a local partner and we've got an agreement.'" The "final construction cost of a new home could fall between $700 million and $900 million -- not including transportation improvements" (ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS, 5/6). In Minneapolis, Kevin Duchschere notes Arden Hills and the Metrodome site appear to be the two remaining possibilities for the new Vikings stadium after Hennepin County "took itself out of the running on Thursday." Hennepin County BOD Chair Mike Opat in a letter to Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton said that "proposed state budget cuts, perceived legislative ambivalence for a stadium and lack of time to develop 'a thoughtful proposal' had persuaded him to stop pursuing a possible agreement with the Vikings." Hennepin County was the "only potential local funding partner backing a new stadium in the Farmers Market area near Target Field, a site that enjoys enthusiastic support from downtown Minneapolis business leaders"(Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 5/6).
GIVING BACK: In Minneapolis, Sid Hartman notes data from the Minneapolis Sports Facilities Commission shows that the Vikings, Twins, T'Wolves and Wild have "paid more than double in taxes than what local and state governments have paid the teams." Since '61, "when the Vikings and Twins arrived," the teams have paid $507.9M in taxes, while the "public investment in major sports venues over the same period equals only" $214.2M. Of the $507.9M, a total of $474M, or 93.3%, "went to the state of Minnesota," while the rest "went to cities and counties." Hartman writes the study "shows again how much tax money is generated by our pro sports franchises" and is "just another reason a stadium bill should be passed at this session" of the state Legislature (Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 5/6).
