Bob CollinsOne can get a pretty good feel for the political will to build a football stadium for Zygi Wilf and his Minnesota Vikings by noting the opinions of some of the not-connected-to-the-Vikings-nor-politicians people who a reasonable person might expect would support the notion.
Rick Prescott, writer of the BallPark Magic blog, for example, makes clear he’s not anti-stadium — far from it, he says — but he thinks the notion of a stadium in Arden Hills is “delusional.”
But let’s be clear about one thing. It’s not hard to understand why that tract in Arden Hills would be Zygi’s first choice. It’s a ton of vacant land, at the intersection of two major interstates, which somebody else would buy and clean up for him and yet which he would control completely. It’s a developer’s wet dream.
If the stadium were built there, Zygi would be able to extract money from the fan base to his heart’s content. Lots of money. For every little thing. Forever. $100 for a tailgating spot on game day? Count on it. $400 for a room at his hotel? Without a doubt. Just bear that in mind if you ever feel the urge to drool over the current proposal.
But don’t worry. It’s not going to happen. If you’ve followed the stadium saga even a little bit, it’s also quite easy to spot why this plan has been dead in the water from day one. And there are a whole lot of reasons:
Where will the stadium end up? Probably the Farmer’s Market site, Prescott figures.
