On Monday night, the Minnesota House of Representatives passed a bill to partially subsidize a new stadium for the Minnesota Vikings in Minneapolis on the current Metrodome site. The 73-to-58 vote marked a major milestone in a long, often heated battle to get a stadium deal done. However, the House bill included one significant change that does not sit well with the Vikings.
Vikings Stadium Bill: Team Pleased With House Vote, Says Change To Finances ‘Unworkable’
An amendment approved by the House lowered the state contribution from $398 million to $293 million and upped the Vikings’ share of the stadium by $105 million.
Lester Bagley, Vikings’ vice president of public affairs and stadium development, told the press that the plan passed by the House does not pass muster with the team.
From the Minneapolis Star Tribune:
“That particular amendment is not workable,” Vikings spokesman Lester Bagley said. “[But] I don’t want to take away from the moment.”
Bagley expanded in a Tuesday morning appearance on KFAN radio:
“We made it very clear that [this amendment] violates a negotiated agreement...that particular provision is unworkable.”
The plan originally taken up by the House on Monday was a compromise shepherded by Gov. Mark Dayton along with elected officials from both parties, organized labor, business interests, the Vikings and the NFL.
Minnesota’s Senate takes up the bill on Tuesday, and that bill could take on a different look from the original, as well as the one passed by the House. If the Senate approves a stadium bill, it would then be subject to further negotiations in conference committee and subsequent votes before landing on the Governor’s desk for a signature.
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