The Minnesota Vikings and state and local representatives are finally ready to bring forward a legislative proposal to build a new stadium for the team.
A news conference is scheduled for 9 a.m. Thursday to detail the proposal.
A person who sat in on negotiations Wednesday evening and requested anonymity ahead of an announcement later Thursday said the stadium would be built near the team's current Metrodome site.
The person said the Vikings would pay more than 50 percent of construction and operating costs, would be required to stay for at least 30 years and that no new local or state taxes would be imposed.
Previously discussed plans for a Vikings stadium in Minneapolis pegged the cost at around $1 billion, with the team contributing more than $400 million and the state $340 million or more. The favored option for the state's share of the money has been revenue from expanding pull-tab gambling to include an electronic version of the game. Minneapolis leaders have proposed diverting tax money now going to fund the city's convention center.
KFAN-FM reported that under this agreed upon plan, the new stadium would be open for the 2016 season.
Negotiators have been working for weeks on a plan for a new stadium. Any deal needs approval from the Legislature and the Minneapolis City Council.
The Vikings have lagged at the bottom of the league in annual revenue in recent years at the Metrodome, which opened in 1982 as the quintessential multipurpose facility. The Dome was always functional over fancy and despite excellent sight lines for fans in most seats for football games, the concourses are cramped, the dDecor is drab and the amenities are outdated.
The Vikings have been asking for public subsidies for a new stadium for more than a decade, citing their need to be sufficiently profitable in the annual $10 billion business that is the NFL. A snowstorm that forced the roof to cave in and collapse on Dec. 12, 2010, put that plea in sharper focus.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
