The Hennepin County (Minn.) Board today is expected to approve “a sweeping plan to add a park, jumbo display screen, retail stores and a public plaza” to the $79.3M rail hub being built near Target Field, according to a front-page piece by Rochelle Olson of the Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE. Twins President Dave St. Peter yesterday said that the new hub, to be called Target Field Station, will be "Minnesota’s version of New York City’s Grand Central Station when it opens next year." The Twins and United Properties will pay $3.7M to Hennepin County, including $1.75M in cash, $240,000 to "defray the cost of building 250 parking spaces for future office space, $750,000 for a jumbo display screen overlooking the 65,000-square-foot public plaza," and $1M in unspecified enhancements and features. The plaza during Twins home dates "will be tightly connected" to the games. The plaza and amphitheater "could be the site of movie nights, music and festivals," and the jumbo screen "could broadcast games for not just the Twins, but other Minnesota teams." The Twins are "expected to develop 2,400 square feet of retail space near the hub." St. Peter said that the businesses "will be chosen to serve both rail riders and to meet the desires of the neighborhood" (Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 9/12).
