September 14, 2005
No more "Gettin' Zygi" headlines, I promise
With hopes dimming of a special Minnesota legislative session to fund stadiums for the Twins, Vikings, and University of Minnesota - Gov. Tim Pawlenty seems to think it'd be better to focus on that hurricane thing - stadium backers are turning up the heat. Today's contestant: Vikings owner Zygi Wilf, who said that all three stadiums were necessary "projects that move the community forward." Other supporters of a special session include state senate majority leader Dean Johnson and Goldy Gopher.
Hennepin County commissioner Mike Opat, architect of the Twins' "three-cents-on-every-20-dollars" plan, is also pushing for a quick resolution, telling the Star Trib: "The economics are time-sensitive - steel prices, oil prices, construction, inflation. That's going to change." Normally I'd just dismiss this as the typical hurry-up offense that stadium boosters go into at lobbying time, Opat may have a point here: Not only are prices on oil and steel (much of the latter is imported through New Orleans) expected to rise in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, but it's hard to imagine that the rebuilding of the Gulf Coast won't suck up construction materials and workers for some time to come, driving up costs industrywide. It's something to watch, not just for Minnesota, but for any city mulling stadium spending.
I'm a resident of Minneapolis, MN. I've contacted my representatives to express my opposition to public funding of sports stadiums. State Representative Jim Davnie(D), and City Council representative Gary Schiff(D)are both in opposition. My State Senator, Wes Skoglund(D), has lost my vote because he can't make up his mind. Hennepin County Commissioner, Peter McLaughlin(D), is a huge stadium supporter running for Mayor of Minneapolis. He is wildly enthusiastic about a county sales tax for a Twins stadium. Incumbent Mayor, R.T. Rybeck(D), has flipped and now supports public funding for stadiums. The voters of Minneapolis have been consistently against subsidizing stadiums for billionaires. Council-member Schiff authored legislation that requires the voters of Minneapolis to vote on large expenditures, like stadiums. But, certain politcians, like McLaughtlin, won't take no for an answer so they went over the heads of the voters of Minneapolis. Even the Senate Minority Leader, Dean Johnson(D), thinks the Minnesota legislature needs a special session so they can ram a stadium or two down the throats of the voters. It's disgusting.
greetz buzz. davnie is my rep too. your facts are spot on, as the brits say. write me anytime with further info. because of this, i voted green in the primary earlier this month.
i just joined the yahoo board off the "field' website today. the argument i'm most afraid of is some type of job creation litany. with the toy train running a few blocks over (a billion gone with no effect on overall traffic gridlock) anything can happen.
best wishes,
ken - longfellow resident
