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Obstacles to a new Minnesota stadium emerged within hours of Monday's official legislative announcement. None was bigger than that of Gov. Tim Pawlenty, whose signature would be required for any bill to be enacted.

Pawlenty, and later his chief spokesman, made clear he won't approve any new state taxes as part of the bill. That would seem to put into jeopardy one of the bill's main financing tools: "User fees" on jerseys, hotel rooms, rental cars and the like. Pawlenty said: "We're not going to be raising or dealing with state taxes to subsidize that."

According to the Star Tribune, spokesman Brian McClung added: "We remain opposed to any stadium plan that includes tax increases, including the hotel tax, jersey tax, and rental car tax in one of the plans unveiled today. The governor continues to believe the team needs a local partner to be successful in their effort."

And House Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher also expressed significant reservations: "I don't think that I'm going to do anything extraordinary here for this bill," she said. "I'm not sure that this bill is ready for prime time."

Some of this is no doubt political posturing. But there isn't much time; the state legislature adjourns May 17.

By MIKE KASZUBA, Star Tribune

Supporters of a new Minnesota Vikings stadium won an initial victory late Tuesday at the State Capitol as a House panel approved a financing plan 6-4 in a race against time as the Legislative session nears an end.

The stadium plan, released Monday, would build a $791 million facility and require the Vikings to pledge $264 million toward the project.

The plan, which had drawn praise but also quick criticism from Gov. Tim Pawlenty and DFL House Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher, underwent a significant metamorphosis at the House committee hearing Tuesday night, as supporters removed taxes on hotel rooms, rental cars and National Football League memorabilia, leaving only a proposal to tap sales taxes now being used to pay for Minneapolis' convention center.

It would also all but require that a new stadium be built at the site of the Metrodome in downtown Minneapolis. City officials, including Mayor R.T. Rybak, have reacted negatively to the convention center tax plan.

Elizabeth Glidden, a Minneapolis council member, told the House panel that city officials had a "great concern about taking critical funding" from the convention center to use it for the Vikings' stadium. But as the late-night hearing came to an abrupt end, Rep. Mike Nelson, DFL-Brooklyn Park, the committee chairman, cut off Glidden's testimony and called for a final vote.

With the House devoting most of Tuesday to major health and human services legislation, Nelson's attempt to hold the hearing earlier in the day didn't come off and it pushed back into the late evening. The committee did not convene until shortly before 11 p.m. By legislative rules, a House committee cannot meet after midnight, which forced Nelson to call for the quick vote.

A Senate state and local government panel said it would also vote on the proposal Wednesday morning, and another House panel also scheduled a hearing on the stadium proposal Wednesday.

Also Tuesday, St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman said that if a Vikings stadium is approved, then proposals for a new St. Paul Saints ballpark and a multi-use hockey rink in downtown St. Paul should also go forward. "Regionalism does not mean one area of the region gets all of the critical assets and the rest of the region gets the leftover crumbs," Coleman said.

dead_poet wrote:Am I reading this right? It's moving forward? Really?!

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PurpleMustReign wrote:
Scary... I will not get too excited until Pawlenty signs a bill though.

After winning a late night vote Tuesday, the Vikings stadium proposal suffered a 10-9 defeat in a House committee Wednesday morning.

HardcoreVikesFan wrote:http://www.startribune.com/sports/92871 ... CinchO7DUs
Well... Can't say I am surprised at all.....

PurpleMustReign wrote:Another question:

What about adding on to the Gopher's Stadium? I've read it can be expanded to like 75k, would that be an option?

ST. PAUL, Minn. (WCCO) ―

A Minnesota House committee defeated the Vikings stadium bill Wednesday morning, and a Senate committee overhauled the bill Wednesday before approving it.

The new version would still rely on the team for a third of the cost while raising an unspecified amount by selling permanent seats. The changes removed a stream of Minneapolis money now going to the city's convention center and a proposed lottery scratch-off game.

The previous version of the bill went before the Minnesota House State and Local Government Operations Reform, Technology and Elections committee, who voted 10-9 against the bill. It was a severe, if not quite fatal blow for the bill.

In the House committee hearing Wednesday morning, the Minnesota Vikings told lawmakers that the team is losing money. In the hearing, a lawmaker asked the Vikings to pay up to 75 percent of a $791 million stadium cost. The Vikings said they were willing to pay 30 percent.

A lawmaker also asked the Vikings if a new stadium could wait until next year. A Vikings spokesperson avoided answering that question.

A Minneapolis city official also testified at the hearing Wednesday, saying that the city is "very concerned" about using the Convention Center tax for a new stadium. The official said that the Vikings are a statewide, not a city asset, and if the team wants a new stadium, the state or a region should pay for it.

On Tuesday night, the bill was heard in the Local Government Division committee, and passed that committee.

The bill proposed to pay for a $791 million arena using city of Minneapolis money now going to pay off bonds on the city's convention center. It would also create a new lottery scratch-off game and calls for the team to put up a third of the cost, which includes a fixed roof.

The Vikings have said that they don't want a fixed roof and feel the team shouldn't have to pay for the cost of a fixed roof.

Sponsor Rep. Loren Solberg said Minneapolis is the focus but he is open to other sites if another city comes forward. The bill requires the Vikings to sign a 40-year lease, not a 30-year lease that is common in the NFL.

After a Wednesday morning decision by the Minnesota Supreme Court ruling that he exceeded his authority when he trimmed $5.3 million from a state program, Gov. Tim Pawlenty said lawmakers should focus on the deficit and the stadium proposal is "not helpful."