Reports are starting to surface that another significant hurdle has been cleared in the quest to get a stadium deal for the Minnesota Vikings taken care of.
According to the St. Paul Pioneer Press, the state and Allied Charities of Minnesota put the finishing touches on a deal last night that would provide more tax relief to charitable gaming interests throughout the state. Under the deal, the charities would receive $36 million in tax relief rather than the $10 million that the state had originally proposed.
Because of this, ACM will support the introduction of electronic bingo and electronic pull tabs, which is said to be the state's main source of funding a Minnesota Vikings' stadium. Proceeds from the new machines will be what funds the state's $400 million contribution to a new stadium. According to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, in the event that there is a shortfall, there are several backup sources of income in the new proposal that will attempt to make it up, including a special lottery game (and there's already a Vikings-themed lottery game out there, if my memory serves me correctly), a luxury suite tax at the new stadium, and Hennepin County tax money.
So, it appears that the team's contribution is pretty much set. . .the state's contribution is pretty much set. . .and the Minneapolis City Council has signed off on things. From what I've been seeing people say on Twitter here so far this afternoon, the last big hurdle might be those back-up funding sources.
Maybe this thing is going to get done after all.