Adam Platt STAR/TRIBUNE
It seems preposterous to advocate for hundreds of millions of dollars in state, county and municipal spending to build a football palace while the Republican majority in the Minnesota Legislature looks to balance the state's budget via $5 billion dollars in cuts to state programs and services.
Yet this is where we are today, we stadium advocates, insisting the time is now, with just a few months left on the Vikings lease and the Metrodome in a state of collapse.
Trust me, I am are aware of the pitiful context. Yet remember where we came from. We were told by opponents that spending on stadia would impair the state's ability to fund more important public services.
The Legislature punted year after year on a Vikings stadium, yet even so our roads are ever worse, our municipalities have even less money and our public schools have not been fixed. There has been no connection.
But to finally fund this effort while trying to impose draconian budget cuts? That's chutzpah, no? Well, yes, it is. But two wrongs don't make a right and the state should move forward with a Vikings stadium funding bill.
The state has played politics with this issue for too long. Even now the Legislature pretends to not be dealing with it until it "resolves" the budget via a set of bills sure to be vetoed. The ruse is to not inflame voter sentiment by appearing to prioritize the stadium ahead of the budget. Perhaps they can't walk and chew gum at the same time, either. Or maybe we're that gullible.
Don't be played for a sucker by accepting the idea that the choice is between a repaired Metrodome or a billion-dollar football palace. The choice is whether we want the Vikings long term, because the NFL has shown it will abandon communities over far less. Cleveland and Baltimore lost NFL teams and had to build new arenas and pay millions in franchise fees to finagle new teams (see: Minnesota Wild).
Why should we care? The Vikings are our most popular sports franchise, and their fate grips a majority of us every autumn. Why else are the malls empty at Sunday noon during the Christmas rush?
I'm not going to claim the Vikes matter more than roads, schools and caring for our seniors -- but they are part of the fabric of a healthy community. Repeated brinksmanship with sports franchises is a symptom of a government that can't work up the pride and fortitude to invest in things people care about. And typically the signs of that malaise are everywhere, not just in professional sports.
Target Field has given downtown Minneapolis a type of vibrancy that no Downtown Council initiative, hot restaurant or contrived festival could hope to produce. We are proud of the Twins, proud of their decidedly nonutilitarian ballpark, and we are proud to have people downtown any given evening.
I understand why it is so hard for the state to decide whether or not to build the Vikings a new stadium because it attracts so many fans in Minnesota. I'm sure many people would be upset to see the Vikings go, but are they that important that they should over power other things like education, etc. I think that the Vikings shouldn't be so greedy and maybe put up with repairing their stadium instead of a new one because things such as education should be put way before sports! Even though i love playing sports, do they not teach us in school that if we don't have good enough grades that we cannot participate in school sports? I think the Vikings should be an example of this instead of trying to take away money that they know is needed for more important problems.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Courtney. The Vikings are valuable to Minnesota even though they suck. It is another attraction that brings in money. However we don't spend enough on education in Minnesota if they even spent a fraction of what they do on Pro Stadiums it would be a gift to the schools of Minnesota. Some how it just doesnt make sense. We elect who we want to represent us. Many people complain that we are spending money more on sports and less on education. If we elect people to represent us we should be electing people who have the same views, which is that education comes first the sports and leisure. We have a warped Legislature.
ReplyDeleteI know that the Vikings is a big part here. I do think that they should build the stadium and keep the Vikings here. Maybe it would be hard in few years, but it's good in the future. It attracts so many people and is part of culture in MN. Despite the pride feeling of MN citizens, it is one of MN's features to attract visitors. If we lose them, maybe we would have money to build up the roads, schools. What about after that? We would lose our culture and feature. Building the stadium would cost money, and even it would cost problems, but at the same time, the money we earn from customers could help us. Just like in China, we spent a lot of money to build 2008 Olympic Stadium, but it was worth it. Because millions of people came to China,not only for Olympic, but also be interested in Chinese culture and stimulated our tourist industry. The achievement is irreplaceable.
ReplyDeleteI personally think it would be better to focus on things such as roads and schooling within our state then build a new stadium for the Vikings. Football is an extremely important part of our American life-style and entertainment but out state is suffering from the economic decline and I think it's time we buckle down on the important stuff that people need. Sometimes, it gets a little outrageous with how much the cost of sports are. Especially professional leagues. The new field for the Vikings would be extremely expensive and I think that the money should be spent in a better way to help our state and those who are living in it. Anyways, the Stadium could have some postitive effects within the Northern state of Minnesota. It would attract many different teams and fans and generate a lot of business and sales of merchandise and food products. As Colleen said, it would also introduce visitors to the Minnesota living and culture and experience our everday lives of the 10,000 Lake State. In the end, I believe it would be best to focus more on the education of the children and the transportation routes in Minnesota before building a new stadium for the Vikings. We need smart people to build that stadium, right? So focus on education!
ReplyDeleteI agree with Colleen. How long would it that for the new stadium to pay for itself? These new building do create new revenue for the state and business in the area which means they pay in more taxes. The taxes go to fund Education! Who else benefits from a new station? The players and owners, why don’t the pony up some of their millions?
ReplyDeleteI definitely think we should keep the Vikings here in Minnesota. They are the main team in our state and bring in a lot of fans. The fans then bring in money. Spending money now to keep them here will eventually bring more money in the future. We need to keep them here even though it might hurt us a little bit now. That hurt now might help us gain money in the future from fans going to Vikings games.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I'm really sick of the Vikings. There has been way to much news about all the Bret Favre stuff for the past 3 years and now the Metrodome collapse this year. I'm just done with it all. The state needs to make a decision and quit hiding behind the coice between fixing the Dome or building a "football palace." It's not right. The Vikings are a good team, but I'm not as much of a fan anymore because of all the propaganda surrounding the team. I wouldn't mind if they went to California. There would be a lot more fans for them there, and our government could spend money on more necessary things.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Ben, Krista and Colleen. The Vikes might not have done good this season but they are very valuable to the Minnesota comunity. The new stadum would cost a lot but the Twins just got a new stadium and the Vikes said that they woruld do what the Twins did to be able to stay here and get a new stadum. I think that the state should fund the stadium in stead of posibly loosing major revinue when they loose the Vikings.
ReplyDeleteI think that its just a hard choice. i understand kritas point as in they bring in fans,andd fans bring in money. On the other hand, we need monet for toher things. If we built a new stadium and kept the vikings here, it would probably pay for its self over time, yet..its still a big choice because were the ones paying for it at the time. i agree with Ryan 150% and im sick of the vikings.. hha. Thye creat a lot of contrivercy, just like this, and i honestly think we should just get rid of them, and put more money is other things we need.
ReplyDeleteI can understand that people want to have a good football team and good equipment (and a nice stadium) to represent their staat. It is a hard decision for the government what to do. But they should think about what is more important for them, a nice football stadium or good (and safe) roads and good education. I don't understand why we students should step back so that the government can give the money to a new stadium. I think a good education and a lot of skilled young people are more important than a nice vikings stadium. The students who graduate within the next few years are the future of the country, not the vikingsplayer.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Ryan. The Vikings don't need some football palace to play in. Yes I understand that the Vikings our one of the ways we get income into our state. Just all the controversy that the Vikings have brought with them these last few years. We should just focus on spending our money on more valuable resources.
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