So, in today's installment of As The Stadium Turns, when we last left off our heroes had been given word that the site for their dream home was looking more and more like a far-off fantasy.
However, today we've been given a new story from one of the architects of the stadium bill that says that such reports are not quite accurate.
"I don’t know what the source of it is," said Morrie Lanning, R-Moorhead, on Monday. "They haven’t said it to me."
"As far as I’m concerned this is still very much an open question," he said.
He said as far as he knows the team has not been told Arden Hills can’t work as a site.
With about 48 hours left before the deadline for proposals to be submitted to Governor Mark Dayton, it's not surprising that we're starting to see this sort of thing come to light.
Hopefully when the final proposals are submitted, we'll have a better idea of what's "viable" and what isn't.
However, the Vikings still seem to think that Arden Hills is the more viable location, based on the letter they've sent to the mayor of Minneapolis. The letter raises several good points, specifically the following:
-If the Vikings were to play three seasons at TCF Bank Stadium, which is the proposed plan if the Metrodome site is chosen, they would lose nearly $40 million over that time.
-TCF Bank Stadium would need $11 million of improvements in order to bring it up to NFL standards for a three-season stretch (which one would assume would include heating coils under the field so it wouldn't turn into an ice rink two or three times a year)
-In order for the parking situation to meet NFL standards, TCF Bank Stadium would also need $19 million worth of parking improvements.
Add it all up, and that's nearly $70 million the team is out by agreeing to play the next three years at TCF Bank Stadium. Don't get me wrong, I realize that a lot of people don't give a damn because the Minnesota Vikings are an evil corporate entity and everything, but it doesn't seem right that they should be out an extra $70 million. That never seems to get mentioned when Minneapolis points out that the current Metrodome site is the "cheapest option available."