Apr 15, 2006 2:52 pm US/Central
Key Stadium Hearings Loom In Legislature This Week
St. Paul (AP) ―
This could be a crucial week for the Minnesota Twins no matter how they perform on the field.
The Minnesota House tax committee will hold two days of hearings on whether Hennepin County voters should be asked to approve a local sales tax increase to help fund a new ballpark.
On Friday, Twins President Dave St. Peter sent an e-mail to season-ticket holders, asking them to dress up in team colors and pack a hearing at the Capitol on Wednesday afternoon that's meant to feature opponents of the referendum.
And Citizens for a Stadium Tax Referendum alerted its members to show up at the hearings, particularly one in Bloomington on Thursday evening when referendum supporters will get their say.
"It's the first time that there's been real public access to legislative members, and particularly to key legislative members who are on the tax committee," said Laura Lehmann, a spokeswoman for the group.
The committee's approval is critical if the project is going to move forward and build the stadium that the Twins say they need to generate the revenue they need to remain competitive.
The team has proposed a 42,000-seat open-air stadium for the Warehouse District in downtown Minneapolis. Hennepin County and the Twins say no state funds would be needed for the ballpark, which would cost about $522 million, including infrastructure and other related costs. To pay for its share of the stadium, Hennepin County wants to levy a 0.15 percent countywide sales tax -- 3 cents on a $20 purchase.
The hearings will focus on whether the plan should be exempted from a state law requiring a referendum on such tax hikes.
The Twins want to avoid the referendum, while various groups, such as Lehmann's, believe the tax proposal should go to the voters.
"It's been shown time and again that Minnesota voters don't want to use public money to fund sports stadium for private owners," Lehmann said.
Twins executives and other stadium supporters say there are legitimate reasons for avoiding a referendum. They say a referendum would create delays that would translate into higher costs. A few months ago, the project carried a $478 million price tag, but since then, rising construction costs have added about $44 million to the estimate.
St. Peter said the stadium bill faces "no shortage of challenges" but that he was looking forward to the hearings.
"Certainly, it's a major step in the process," he said. "But we feel good about our bill, and we feel good about the support for our bill."
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The Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission owns The Metrodome.
(© 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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