Twins clinch key win in stadium quest

04/22/2006

House committee OKs ballpark plan, sending it closer to likely final approval

BY ARON KAHN
Pioneer Press

The Minnesota Twins won their most important victory in years Friday when the House Taxes Committee approved their plan to move from the Teflon-shrouded Metrodome to the natural grass of a new ballpark in the Warehouse District in downtown Minneapolis.

Passage of the measure on a 15-13 bipartisan vote all but assured a vote next week on the floor of the House, where leaders from both parties recently said there were enough supporters to approve the bill.

The relief of Twins officials was palpable after 11 years of seeking a workable ballpark plan, intended to increase team revenues by $40 million a year, enough to support an average major league payroll, officials say.

The Twins’ current payroll of $63 million ranks 19th of 30 teams.

“I think I’m going to have a good weekend,’’ said Twins ballpark point man Jerry Bell. “I feel pretty good right now.”

House Speaker Steve Sviggum, a ballpark supporter, said the bill likely would be heard Monday night in the Ways and Means Committee and Wednesday on the House floor. He expected close votes on both occasions — and in the Senate, also — but predicted the bill would survive.

Under one of the few amendments that passed Friday, no smoking would be allowed in the ballpark, even though it would not be roofed.

The Taxes Committee’s approval of the bill was vital because it allowed the measure to proceed with an exemption from a state law requiring a Hennepin County referendum on a proposed 0.15 percent county sales tax that would pay for three-quarters of the $522 million project.

The Twins and their partner, the Hennepin County Board, had said they would ditch the plan if a ballot issue were mandated. They contend such a vote would create delays and greater expense, while opponents claim the ballpark boosters’ real worry is that the tax would be voted down.

Should the bill be passed by the Legislature and signed by Gov. Tim Pawlenty, who favors the plan, a 42,000-seat open-air ballpark would open in the spring of 2010 on what is now a surface parking lot 10 blocks west of the Metrodome and two blocks northwest of Target Center.

Citing Minnesota’s cold weather in the spring and fall, Rep. Ron Erhardt, R-Edina, attempted to change the bill by providing for a retractable roof.

“We should own up to what has to be done here, and do it,’’ Erhardt said, predicting the Twins would be back at the Legislature in a future session asking for money to cover the stadium.

But Bell said designing the ballpark to be “roof ready” would be too expensive.

“We will not be back asking for a roof,’’ said Bell, president of Twins Sports Inc., the Carl Pohlad company that owns the team.

Rather, Bell said architects are exploring designs that would protect many of the seats from precipitation and heat some seats and gathering areas with energy produced by the county’s nearby garbage recycling plant.

Because a roof would add roughly $115 million to the project, Erhardt’s amendment would have changed the county tax to a state tax, thereby raising more money and relieving Hennepin County businesses and residents from the burden of supporting the project.

Because a variety of proposed state taxes for a ballpark have been defeated by lawmakers over the years, the bill’s sponsor, Rep. Brad Finstad, R-New Ulm, reminded colleagues that heading in that direction again would kill the bill. Erhardt’s amendment was soundly defeated.

In addition to the sales tax, estimated to generate about $29 million in the first year, the county would be responsible for contributing $1 million a year for ballpark improvements, and funding the budget of a public ballpark authority that would own the stadium.

The Twins would get all the revenue from the ballpark, including those from naming rights. In return, the team would guarantee that it would play in Minnesota for 30 years, and pay $130 million upfront toward construction costs.

The team also would pay an estimated $10 million a year in ballpark operating expenses, $1 million a year for ballpark improvements, $250,000 a year in contributions to youth and amateur sports activities, and would continue to provide family and student discounts.

If team owner Pohlad sells the team after the ballpark is approved, he must give the public 18 percent of the proceeds from the sale — a percentage that would decline over 10 years. The latter provision, unique in the nation, is based on the assumption that his sale price would rise substantially because of the new ballpark.

Forbes magazine reported Thursday that the Twins are worth $216 million, a 21 percent increase over last year. Pohlad bought the team in 1984 for $38 million.

During nearly six hours of debate, committee members offered amendments aimed at changing a variety of the bill’s elements.

After lawmakers from Hennepin County tried to change several financial components negotiated between the Twins and the Hennepin County Board, Rep. Dan Dorman, R-Albert Lea, suggested glibly that if they don’t want the ballpark, the Legislature should keep the Hennepin County tax but require the ballpark to be built in St. Paul.

Many Hennepin legislators have been wary of the bill, out of a concern that constituents would vote them out of office because of the tax. Indeed, all six lawmakers from the county voted against the measure Friday.

Aron Kahn can be reached at akahn@pioneerpress.com or 612-338-6516.

What’s Next?

Twins stadium bill likely to be heard Monday in the House Ways and Means Committee and on the House floor Wednesday. It must also go to the Senate.

The deal

Stadium: 42,000-seat open-air ballpark to be finished by 2010 Opening Day in Warehouse District of downtown Minneapolis. Site is now a parking lot.

Cost: $522 million, for ballpark and other expenses such as needed infrastructure improvements.

Funding: $130 million from Twins; $392 million from a 0.15 percent Hennepin County sales tax if approved. Tax is 3 cents on a $20 purchase, except for clothing, grocery food, medical supplies and cars.

How we got here

Metrodome tenant since 1982, Twins have been pushing for a new ballpark the past 11 years. Current deal was proposed in 2005, but went nowhere by the time the Legislature adjourned last year. Team’s commitment at the Dome ends this season. Hennepin County Board reapproved the deal earlier this month.