Top News

St. Paul (WCCO) ― In a display of maroon-and-gold muscle, the University of Minnesota won decisive House approval Thursday night for a bill bringing Gophers football back to campus with a $248 million stadium.

The financing plan, committing state taxpayers to half of the stadium debt, passed on a 103-30 vote. The proposal still needs Senate approval before a version can head to a supportive Gov. Tim Pawlenty.

It's the first time in four years a chamber of the Legislature has voted on a stadium bill, but probably not the last with the Twins and Vikings waiting in the wings.

"This is a major vote and a major step on the way to fulfilling the dream of bringing the stadium back to campus," University president Robert Bruininks said just prior to the House action. "This is historic and I would argue a monumental vote."

The proposed stadium would rise on a parking lot across the street from the university's basketball and hockey arenas. It's about two blocks from the former Memorial Stadium, which was demolished after the Gophers football team moved to the Metrodome in 1982.

Rep. Denny McNamara (R) Hastings, "This is a win for the state of Minnesota. This is a win for the kids whether you're college kids or K-12, and it is a win for the university 'cuz it gets football back on campus. "

University senior Jeff Holtz's undergraduate days will be long over before the stadium's anticipated 2009 opening. He feels like he missed part of the college experience.

"Going to the Metrodome, it's like a field trip," he said. "This is an indoor professional stadium. It's not meant for college sports. There's no other ways to describe it. When the marching band plays, you can't hear it. The sound disappears. When you go there, you have to take a bus."

The plan is for a 50,000-seat open-air stadium with 39 suites and an indoor club area. It would be home to a hall of fame and provide permanent space to the marching band.

After the state's share, the rest of the cost would be borne by private donations, a $50-per-year student fee, game-day parking revenue and a $35 million naming-rights deal with TCF Bank.

In exchange for its contribution, the state would get the rights to 2,800 acres of university-owned land in Rosemount. The university could still do research there and the state would be prohibited from using the parcel for commercial or industrial development.

Rep. Dennis Ozment from Rosemount wanted everyone to consider the property they would give up and the true price of it.

Ozment said, "You want to know how valuable this land is? it's priceless, that's how valuable it is. Once it's gone, it's gone forever. "

By a sizable margin, the House turned back an amendment to strip out the land deal, which would have reduced the state's annual payment from $9.4 million a year to $7.4 million. They also rejected a call to put the student fees to a student body vote.

For the Legislature, 2006 could be a watershed year when it comes to the stadium issue. All three of the Metrodome's tenants are after separate facilities, at a projected cost of more than $1.5 billion.

Lawmakers approved a Minnesota Twins ballpark plan in 2002, but the team said it couldn't make the numbers work.

Some senators have raised the possibility of rolling the three plans into a single bill. The Vikings, which have the most pricey proposal, are airing radio ads touting "a three-stadium solution."

"This is the best opportunity our state has had to resolve the Vikings, Twins and University of Minnesota stadium issues," the ad narrator says.

House Speaker Steve Sviggum, R-Kenyon, warned against the approach, saying the popular Gophers plan could sink under the weight of the other two.

"If you try to load up this bill, they all die," Sviggum said.

Twins Sports Inc. president Jerry Bell also prefers three distinct bills to one mega-bill. The Twins want state approval for a higher Hennepin County sales tax and an exemption from a state law requiring that tax be put to voters first.

It's the same plan lawmakers failed to act on a year ago. Bell said team officials were "ready to throw in the towel" on the stadium bill, but they now have a much brighter outlook.

"A lot of legislators have told me they want a vote on it," Bell said. "Some will vote no, but they want a vote on it."

(© 2006 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)