Vikings stadium
A rendering of a proposed Vikings stadium east of the Metrodome in Minneapolis on March 1, 2012. (Minnesota Vikings)

With a deal for a new $975 million Minnesota Vikings stadium in hand, the hard work now begins for its supporters: selling it to lawmakers.

By all indications Thursday at the state Capitol, it won't be easy.

"I think it's way too early to speculate what the mood would be," said Senate Majority Leader Dave Senjem, R-Rochester.

Gov. Mark Dayton gathered with team leaders, Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak and stadium supporters in the Legislature on Thursday morning to unveil the plan. It requires a $398 million contribution from the state.

Dayton wants a vote on the stadium this session.

Senjem said that while he shares the governor's desire for a vote this session, he can't guarantee the bill will make it through committees to the floor for a vote.

Meanwhile, House Speaker Kurt Zellers, R-Maple Grove, said he won't actively push for a stadium but will work to ensure a fair process.

"We have a concept. But again, we still don't have a bill," Zellers said when asked about Dayton's request that both the House and Senate hold an up-or-down vote on the stadium this session.

Work on a bill based on the new agreement is set to begin this morning, and the governor's office said it is expected to be introduced Monday.

The key components were revealed Thursday after weeks of closed-door meetings: a $975 million project, split roughly equally between team and public, that puts a stadium a bit east of the current Metrodome. Renovations to Target Center, a sore point for some lawmakers, were removed to a separate proposal.


"This is an exciting day because the dream of keeping the Minnesota Vikings here for generations to come is close at hand," team owner Zygi Wilf said at the news conference announcing the plan.

"We believe that we have a plan now that stands the best chance of our being successful in getting legislative approval," said Rep. Morrie Lanning, R-Moorhead, the key stadium lawmaker in the House. "The time has come for Minnesota to make a decision."


Under the deal, costs to build the facility would break down as follows: $398 million from the state, $150 million from Minneapolis, and $427 million from the Vikings. The construction costs break down to 56 percent public, 44 percent private.

The Vikings would put in the lion's share of operating and capital expenses, which means over 30 years the team shoulders just more than half the total cost.

The state's contribution winds up about $100 million more than was initially planned, primarily because lawmakers kept restricting what kinds of local funding they would accept, Dayton said.

"There was nowhere else to go but the state. It's the best deal we could negotiate.

Gov. Mark Dayton at the State Capitol
Gov. Mark Dayton, right, and Vikings owner Zygi Wilf, left at the State Capitol on March 1, 2012. (Pioneer Press: Ben Garvin)
I'm not entirely pleased with it, and others are not either," Dayton said, but legislators and the Minneapolis City Council will have to decide whether they agree with him that it's worth passing.

He said the stadium project would bring needed jobs and urged the council to "act expeditiously."


Minnesota's share would come from revenue derived from an electronic version of the paper pull-tab games played in bars and restaurants across the state.

The e-pull-tabs would generate an estimated $72 million in revenue a year. It would take about $38 million a year the first 10 years (descending after that) to service the bonds.

The rest of the money raised either would be used to provide tax relief for charities that rely on the games or to pay off the bonds faster, officials said.

Minneapolis' portion comes from an extension of sales taxes that currently support the convention center. On top of the construction money, the city would kick in an additional $188 million for stadium operations under the deal.

Zygi Wilf and his brother Mark declined to elaborate Thursday on where the Vikings' $427 million would come from, saying simply that it would be from private sources. Those are thought to include a loan from the NFL, stadium naming rights and perhaps personal seat licenses, should the team decide to sell those.

The team also would kick in $327.1 million for operations over the 30-year life of the project.


The Legislature must adjourn by May 21, and leaders have said they want to be done in April.

Gov. Mark Dayton at the State Capitol
Gov. Mark Dayton at the State Capitol on March 1, 2012. (Pioneer Press: Ben Garvin)

To Zellers, whether action on a stadium happens this session is not the prime concern.

"We should make sure we do it right," he said.

House Minority Leader Paul Thissen, DFL-Minneapolis, said there will be Democratic votes for and against the plan.

"It's a good first step, but it really does have a long way to go," Thissen said. "Right now the ball is in Speaker Zellers' court."

In the Senate, Senjem said members are still digesting the details of the plan. Among the key questions will be whether gambling opponents will be able to accept this form of gaming, and whether members will be convinced electronic pull-tabs are a reliable enough revenue source to finance the bonds.

"All these questions loom," he said, and that's what the committee process is for.

Senate Minority Leader Tom Bakk, DFL-Cook, said through a spokesman that he didn't want to comment on the proposal until he had conferred with the other three leaders.

One potential legislative hurdle went away Thursday.

House Taxes Committee chair Greg Davids, R-Preston, said he would not pursue a bill that would end the local taxes in Minneapolis after 2020, given that those are being relied upon for stadium funding.


The Legislature isn't the only obstacle facing the proposal. It's unsure whether backers have built a majority on the Minneapolis City Council to support the plan.

Rybak and Ted Mondale, chair of the Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission and Dayton's key stadium negotiator, said at least one issue for the city - a charter provision requiring a citywide vote if more than $10 million is used for a sports facility - would be rendered moot.

"The sales taxes are collected by the state and kept by the state," Mondale said. "The city never touches it from a legal standpoint."

The state would take a portion of the sales tax revenue needed to support the stadium, Rybak said.

Companion legislation would be introduced to give the city control over the remainder of the sales tax revenue. That money would be used for economic development, including the $135 million Target Center renovation and continued support of the convention center, he said.

If both the stadium bill and the companion bill pass the Legislature, Rybak said, they'll be taken up by the council.

"Every single politician is now going to have to make a tough decision, and the decision is really about the question of what are we going to be as a state," he said.

Among the other elements of the deal:

-- The fixed-roof stadium would be modeled after the Colts' stadium in Indianapolis. A retractable roof could be added if done without additional public money. Such a roof would be necessary if a plan to attract a Major League Soccer team pans out.

-- A public plaza is planned facing downtown Minneapolis. The site plan includes a block owned by the Star Tribune newspaper and some land owned by the Wilfs.

-- The stadium is owned and operated by a public stadium authority, with three members appointed by the governor and two by Minneapolis.

-- The team plays in Dome through 2014 and the University of Minnesota's TCF Bank Stadium in 2015 before the new stadium opens in 2016.

-- The Vikings commit to a 30-year lease and keep naming rights and other team-related revenue; other revenue goes to the stadium authority.

Doug Belden can be reached at 651-228-5136.