Feb 16, 2006 10:23 am US/Central
Wilf Could Bring $1B To Blaine For Stadium, More
Blaine, Minn. (AP) ―
In the not-to-distant future, Vikings owner Zygi Wilf hopes his football stars will be playing amid the Northern Lights.
Wilf's new stadium dreams have grown into a proposed commercial development project, dubbed the Northern Lights at Blaine. Wilf and his partners could throw $1 billion into the complex, according to team vice president Lester Bagley.
Officials in the northern suburb were gathering for a sneak preview Thursday night, but the most important audience is probably at the Capitol. Wilf, a New Jersey developer who bought the franchise last summer, needs state and county money to make the project fly.
The cornerstone is a $675 million stadium that would allow the Vikings to flee the Metrodome in downtown Minneapolis. Wilf has committed $280 million to the stadium and wants public money for the rest.
"But the $1 billion (investment) doesn't happen without the stadium piece of it," Bagley added. "The stadium is the anchor."
The surrounding development would include retail shops, corporate offices, residential space and a medical facility, Bagley told the Star Tribune, which viewed the team's drawings of the proposed development.
Ron Holch is an organizer of a group fighting the current stadium plan because it doesn't call for a public vote. He said Wilf's logic doesn't make sense.
"If he's bringing all this money in, why doesn't he build his own stadium? If this is such a good deal for us, why isn't he paying for it?" Holch asked. "There's something wrong with this picture when a rich guy says, 'I'm going to help you out. Pay for my stadium."'
Top state leaders have said the Vikings are third in line in the new stadium hunt, behind the Twins and University of Minnesota football squad. House Speaker Steve Sviggum, R-Kenyon, has said he doubts the Vikings plan would be voted on this year.
But Wilf has aggressively pursued it anyway. Bagley said Wilf met two weeks ago with Gov. Tim Pawlenty and again Tuesday with Pawlenty chief of staff David Gaither.
"The governor has expressed that we're open to further communication," said Pawlenty spokesman Brian McClung. "We've got a lot on the plate for what will be a short session, but we've committed to having additional discussions with the Vikings."
The Blaine site totals 740 acres. About 400 acres are considered developable, and Wilf has half of that under contract.
Bagley said if the entire site were developed as planned, the total pricetag for the project would be between $1.4 billion and $1.5 billion.
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The Metrodome replaced Met Stadium, which used to be in Bloomington. The Mall of America now stands on that site.
(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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