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May 08, 2006
Tax breaks giveth, and taketh away
Yet another reminder of why sports projects' economic impacts are overblown: Officials in St. Paul are expressing concern that a new state-subsidized Minnesota Vikings stadium could cannibalize convention business from St. Paul's RiverCentre convention hall and the Minneapolis Convention Center. "At a certain point, you're going to have duplicative facilities," state senator Sandy Pappas told the St. Paul Pioneer Press. "It may make it harder for St. Paul and Minneapolis legislators to vote for the Vikings stadium if it's going to compete with our facilities."
The Mall of America is also seeking $247 million in property-tax breaks for a new performing-arts center, which St. Paul officials worry would draw business away from their city's Roy Wilkins Auditorium. They should know, since the region has been through this before: The Met Center in Bloomington was torn down in 1994 after the North Stars moved to Dallas, in part because there weren't enough arena events to go around between it and Minneapolis' then-new Target Center - only to see St. Paul build a new arena to host the Wild when the NHL granted that expansion franchise six years later.
The Minnesota Senate passed a mega-transit bill today (May 9, 2006) that would raise more than $12 Billion over 30 years. It would also provide approx. $1 Billion for a new Twins stadium (w/roof) and Vikings stadium (w/roof and mixed use development). The financing for the transit/stadium/political pork salad would come from a 7 county Mpls/St. Paul metro area .5% sales tax increase. The catch is the voters would have to approve the tax at the ballot box this November. Since the Gov. Tim (No New Taxes) Pawlenty said he would veto the bill, expect major changes to the legislation. Remove the Vikings stadium and the transit and the referendum and Twins owner Carl "The Cry Baby" Pohlad might finally get every billionaire owners dream; a 75% taxpayer financed stadium that gives him 100% of the profits. Didn't I just see something on TV that implied Mpls/St. Paul was the second smartest city in the country? A stadium deal like this will surely cause those rankings to slip drastically! The legislative session wraps up on May 22. My money is on Carl "The Cry Baby" Pohlad. His billions make for a very powerful lobbying effort. So much for being a smart place to live. Best Wishes!
Posted by Jim on May 9, 2006 09:14 PM