In Columbus, Bob Hunter writes the length of time it took the Crew to strike a naming-rights deal for Mapfre Stadium "speaks to how big an occasion this is for the Crew, although it’s a little troubling that neither side would even hint at the price of Mapfre’s commitment." Continually repeating that it is a "multiyear, multimillion" deal "could be seen as a way to avoid saying the Crew didn’t get" the 10-year, $20M deal that the Dynamo and the Earthquakes got for their stadium naming rights. In a city "teeming with insurance companies," the Crew "struck a naming-rights deal with one that most of us have never heard of" (COLUMBUS DISPATCH, 3/4).
BIRD WATCHING: In Minneapolis, Rochelle Olson reports a "small band of citizen-activists has pushed bird-safe glass" at the new Vikings stadium "from an afterthought to a cause célèbre." Minnesota Sports Facilities Authority Chair Michele Kelm-Helgen said, “We’re getting close. It’s been frustrating that we don’t have anything to announce yet.” But most activists said that they have "received a chilly reception from the Vikings, who haven’t met with them, and the MSFA." Olson notes some activists "regularly speak during open forums at the MSFA’s monthly board meetings" (Minneapolis STAR-TRIBUNE, 3/4).
FATHER FIGURES: In San Diego, Lori Weisberg reports the Chargers stadium task force put together by Mayor Kevin Faulconer met yesterday with the builders of Petco Park, "who have also proposed a downtown football facility." The meeting with representatives of JMI "comes as the advisory group races to choose a stadium site and financing plan by a self-imposed May deadline." Momentum "appears to be growing" for a stadium at the Mission Valley location, but the task force "has given no hints of which way it is leaning" (SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE, 3/4).
