Dayton sent letters to Minneapolis mayor R.T. Rybak and Ramsey County board chairman Rafael Ortega. He requested "as much detailed information as possible" about how each would pay a local cost share, how ownership and operating structures would work, and arguments as to why their site is superior. Dayton wrote that his request had been vetted with the two lead stadium bill sponsors in the state House and Senate.
Dayton said at an afternoon news conference that he hoped setting a deadline would return a sense of urgency to the issue in advance of the Jan. 24 start of the 2012 legislative session, where the stadium debate is expected to dominate much of lawmakers' initial attention.
The Vikings have been seeking a public subsidy to help build a replacement for the Metrodome, which team officials say is no longer sufficiently profitable. The team's last game under their lease in that 30-year-old facility was played last weekend, and team officials have vowed not to renew it.
Costs to build a new stadium are likely to exceed $1 billion, with the Vikings so far signaling willingness to pay more than $400 million. The state would pay about $300 million from an undetermined revenue source likely to include tax revenue from a gambling expansion, leaving the local host expected to cough up about $350 million.
Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press
