Committee rejects Vikes stadium bill

[NaTaS+ 958]

 

 

via ESPN

 

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- A Minnesota House committee voted down the Vikings stadium bill Monday night, dealing a major blow to the team's decade-long effort to secure a taxpayer subsidy for a replacement to the Metrodome.

 

The House Government Operations Committee mustered only six votes for the stadium proposal, with nine members voting against it. The vote, which came just after 10 p.m. following a four-hour hearing on the bill, makes it extremely unlikely the bill could be revived in the remaining weeks of a legislative session expected to wrap up before the end of April.

 

"Somebody's going to have to pull a rabbit out of a hat for this thing to be alive at this point," said Rep. Morrie Lanning, the chief House sponsor of the $975 million stadium plan. A Senate version of the stadium bill has been stalled in that chamber for the last month.

 

Lester Bagley, the Vikings' point man on the stadium push at the Capitol, said afterward that the team was "extremely disappointed" at the outcome. "I guess I would ask the state, what else would you expect us to do? What else can we do?" he said.

 

Gov. Mark Dayton has been a committed and vocal supporter of the stadium proposal, repeatedly stressing that he believes failure to help the team build a new stadium could result in Minnesota losing the Vikings to another city.

 

A spokeswoman said Dayton would not have an immediate comment on the committee vote. In addition to tying the team's future to Minnesota, Dayton has been touting the stadium proposal as a means of creating thousands of construction jobs.

 

The Democratic governor was scheduled to meet Tuesday morning with Republican legislative leaders to talk about the waning days of the session, and Monday night's developments are likely to be a major part of the discussion.

 

Bagley said the team would continue to push the proposal as long as the Legislature remains in session. "But this is extremely disappointing, and it sends a strong message to the Vikings and the NFL about the situation," he said. He would not say whether the committee vote made the team's future in Minnesota any less secure.

 

The proposal that fell in the House committee would have split the tab three ways for a stadium proposed to be built at the current Metrodome site in downtown Minneapolis: $398 million from the state from taxes on expanded gambling, $150 million from the city of Minneapolis from existing sales taxes and $427 million from the Vikings with assistance likely from the NFL.

 

Prior to the vote, Vikings officials faced tough questioning from several committee members who said they weren't convinced the proposal is a good deal for taxpayers.

 

"How do we as representatives of public taxpayers, how do we know we're getting a good deal?" asked Rep. Ryan Winkler, DFL-Golden Valley. Winkler went on to vote against the proposal. Rep. Bev Scalze, DFL-Little Canada, questioned whether a football stadium was a defensible use for $398 million in proposed new tax revenue when the state is just starting to recover from several years of persistent budget deficits.

 

Rep. Dean Urdahl, R-Grove City, raised a question frequently heard from stadium bill critics as the team's bid has dominated headlines: "Why should we help a billionaire build a stadium he can afford to build himself?" he asked, referencing Vikings owner Zygi Wilf. Urdahl ultimately voted to keep the bill alive, one of five Republicans on the committee to support for it along with one Democrat. Of the nine no votes, five came from Democrats and four were Republicans.

 

Leading up to the vote, Bagley had reiterated the view of the team's owners that the Metrodome is no longer sufficiently profitable compared with other NFL venues. While the team is committed to play in the Metrodome for the 2012 football season, it no longer has an active lease in the 30-year-old facility, and team officials have said they do not intend to sign one.

 

 

 

This isnt looking good folks. I'll be pretty upset if the Vikings end up losing their franchise to another city.

[Packers Dynasty 2010 116]

Not looking good for the Vikings, may be headed to LA after all.

[BwareDWare94 723]

And we wonder why Minnesota is fucked up economically. I mean, pair a few years under Tim Pawlenty and the potential of losing a major economic asset in a Vikings franchise that sells out almost every game and the future looks bleak.

[vikesfan1 11]

I don't even want to talk about it

[FIDDYDEUCE 81]

Ouch.

 

It'd suck to see this team move out of Minny...

[NaTaS+ 958]

 

 

via NFL.com

 

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell told Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton on Wednesday that there would be "serious consequences" for the Vikings if a stadium bill is not completed.

 

A Minnesota House committee voted down a bill on Monday that would have provided for a new stadium at the site of the Metrodome, leaving the Vikings' long-term fate up in the air. The team is committed to playing in the Metrodome for the 2012 season, even though its lease expired last year.

 

According to the St. Paul Pioneer-Press, Eric Grubman, the NFL's executive vice president of ventures and business operations, said the situation was "ripe for change."

 

"I don't know if that means a sale. I don't know if that means a move. You have a very dejected ownership," Grubman said.

 

In an interview with The Star Tribune, Grubman said "there are plenty of willing buyers."

 

"I think the Wilfs do not want to sell the franchise, but I think there is a point where they probably would be open-minded to listening to alternatives," he said. "To my knowledge, they have not been willing to do that at this point ... I doubt the commissioner would put probabilities or threaten or anything like that. But I would not be surprised if the commissioner tells the governor, if he asks, what other cities are interested in the Vikings because we are aware of that."

 

If a deal isn't reached this year for a new stadium in Minnesota, Grubman said he believes the league's criteria for approving relocation of the franchise would be met.

 

"Who's holding this up?" Grubman asked. "Who doesn't want this to be voted on? Stand up and be counted."

 

Roger Chamberlain, a state senator who introduced a competing bill to shift much of the stadium cost from the taxpayers to the Vikings, answered the league's concern.

 

"It's disappointing to think the NFL or the Vikings are driving policy for Minnesota government," Chamberlain wrote in an email. "They need to be willing to come back to the table and negotiate. The Vikings and NFL are in a much better financial position than our state."

 

Dayton holds out hope a bill can be reached this year, if not before the end of the session, then perhaps in a special session after the November elections.

 

Goodell has another phone call scheduled for Thursday with Dayton and Pittsburgh Steelers president Art Rooney II, who chairs the league's stadium committee.

 

 

 

[BwareDWare94 723]

Yeah, this is getting ridiculous. Yes, Minnesota is in a dire financial state (on their own account). But you lose the revenue of the Minnesota Vikings and how does that improve things? Oh wait, it makes it much worse.

[Favre4Ever+ 4,476]

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- A Minnesota Senate committee narrowly approved a public subsidy on Friday to help the Vikings build a new football stadium, reviving the team's struggling effort just hours after NFL commissioner Roger Goodell visited the state Capitol to jumpstart what had been a stalled stadium debate.

 

The Senate's Local Government and Elections Committee passed the bill on an 8-6 vote after a hearing that stretched nearly four hours. While the stadium bill still faces a long haul in the waning days of Minnesota's legislative session, the committee's vote gave the $975 million stadium proposal new life four days after a companion bill's defeat in a House committee sparked near panic among supporters.

http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/7836485/minnesota-senate-committee-approves-bill-public-subsidy-help-vikings-build-new-stadium-minneapolis

[Omerta+ 1,206]

I hate to see any franchise lose their team because of economics. I am not sure what else can be done to save them though. That and LA has a bunch of money and the revenue would only go up with the population what it is and the big wigs who live there. This is terrible news.

[Maverick 791]

Looks like Goodell said something to get the ball rolling. Good on him.

[oochymp 2,393]

Vikings stadium: On to Senate

By Kevin Seifert | ESPN.com

 

It's a bit late for this old-timer, so I'll do my best to type this post with no factual errors and a minimum of typos. Let's review what you should know about Monday's activities on the floor of the Minnesota House of Representatives:

 

The Minnesota Vikings' stadium bill was approved by a vote of 73-58.

 

The bill moves on to the Minnesota Senate for debate and a vote, possibly as early as Tuesday.

 

A number of amendments were debated and several adopted during debate that began at 3 p.m. ET and continued until about 11:30 p.m. ET. The most significant: The state's share of the $975 million deal was lowered from $398 million to $293 million. The extra $105 million was added to the Vikings' share, raising it from $427 million to $532 million. Like everything else in the bill, that change is subject to negotiation. It seems unlikely that the Vikings would agree to raise their share by that much, if at all.

 

If the Senate approves its version of the bill, a House-Senate conference committee would form to create a single bill that would be sent back to both floors for final approval before sending to Gov. Mark Dayton later this week.

 

We'll stick to our strategy of avoiding predictions. It goes almost without saying that the relatively comfortable margin in the House bodes well for its continued success in the Senate, but politics can change in a hurry. One thing is for certain: I haven't watched this much public access TV since "UHF." Good night everyone. I'll be here all week.

 

Source

the issue is still far from over as it looks like even if this passes there will still be a negotiation regarding the shift of $105M from the State to the Vikings, but it's a step in the right direction for the Vikings to stay in Minnesota

[oochymp 2,393]

and response:

Vikings VP: Stadium not done deal

Updated: May 8, 2012, 12:34 PM ET Associated Press

 

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- A Minnesota Vikings executive says state lawmakers could sink a stadium deal by making it too hard on the club.

 

Team vice president Lester Bagley made the comments in an interview on 1500 ESPN Tuesday as the Senate prepared to vote on a stadium financing proposal.

 

A day earlier, House members approved a stadium deal but added $105 million to the team's share.

 

Bagley says stadium opponents will do all they can to derail the deal.

 

He points to a Twins ballpark bill that cleared the Legislature in 2002, only to fall apart. It took the team another four years to win legislative support for a workable bill.

 

 

Link

pretty clear this is far from over