February is an awfully cold time to be playing outdoor baseball in Minnesota, so University of Minnesota baseball coach John Anderson is working to make the new Minnesota Vikings stadium baseball-friendly — but the NFL team is skeptical about what he is proposing. The Vikings want to build a state-of-the-art stadium to replace the Metrodome, […]
Tag Archives | minnesota vikings
Adios, Metrodome
The decision last week to build a new stadium for the NFL’s Minnesota Vikings had one bittersweet side effect: the Metrodome will be torn down to make way for the new facility. The decision really wasn’t hard: though other downtown Minneapolis sites were under consideration to house the new 65,000-seat football stadium (including a site […]
St. Paul officials confident in scoring state aid for Saints ballpark
A day after the Minnesota Legislature wrapped up its 2012 session with dramatic funding of a Minnesota Vikings stadium, it appears the St. Paul Saints (independent; American Association) may be a winner as well. We wrote several days ago about the Saints project being shut out of any direct funding in the legislative bonding bill […]
State aid for Saints ballpark coming down to the wire
State funding for a new St. Paul Saints ballpark (independent; American Association) is very much in the air, as Minnesota legislators hunker down for the end of the 2012 session. There are two big issues before lawmakers that could in theory involve St. Paul’s request for $27 million in state funding for a Lowertown ballpark: […]
Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome / Minnesota Golden Gophers
Hailed as an engineering marvel when it opened in 1982 and abandoned by the Minnesota Twins for a spiffier Target Field, the Metrodome is still a functioning ballpark, hosting Golden Gopher baseball as well as a slew of small-college and high-school games every winter and spring. FAST FACTS Address: 34 Kirby Puckett Place, Minneapolis.First Game: […]
One anniversary not marked by MLB this year: Metrodome opening
We’ve been running plenty of anniversary stories this season, but here’s one you won’t see trumpeted by Major League Baseball: the opening of the Metrodome 30 years ago. When the Metrodome opened in 1982, indoor baseball was still a relative novelty: the Astros played in that futuristic amusement park called the Astrodome and the Seattle […]
Duluth Huskies unveil renovation plan for Wade Stadium
Duluth’s historic WPA-era Wade Stadium would be extensively renovated under a game plan unveiled yesterday by the Duluth Huskies (summer collegiate; Northwoods League). It’s a pretty cool plan, one that keeps the historic nature of the ballpark while upgrading the mechanicals and overhauling fan spaces. For the fans, a new parking-lot-side entry would be added, […]
Vikings stadium debate could help Saints, Huskies — but unlikely to happen
A proposed new St. Paul Saints (independent; American Association) ballpark and a renovation of Duluth’s Wade Stadium could be part of any bonding bill for a new Minnesota Vikings stadium — but the Legislature is unlikely to meet in special session to consider the issue. The state of Minnesota made national headlines with a 20-day […]
Gophers still short on fundraising for new ballpark
The University of Minnesota still needs to raise more than a million dollars to start the first phase of renovations to decrepit Siebert Field — and that’s not counting the additional millions to complete the project. So far the school has raised a little less than $5.5 million, with the first round of renovations currently […]
Minnesota Legislature adjourns with no Saints ballpark funding
The Minnesota Legislature adjourned for the 2011 session with a lot left on its plate, including bonding bills that would help pay for construction of a new St. Paul Saints (independent; American Association) ballpark — but with the certainty of a special session, the issue is far from dead. The Legislature adjourned with many large […]
Minneapolis proposes new Vikings stadium, demolition of Metrodome
In a move that could impact hundreds of college-baseball games annually, the city of Minneapolis will be unveiling a plan today to build a new Minnesota Vikings stadium on the current Metrodome site, leaving local universities without a warm place to play during the mean months of March and April. The Dome is best known […]
New funding plan on horizon for Saints ballpark?
A proposed regional sports authority in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area could be empowered to issue bonds and provide funding for a new St. Paul Saints (independent; American Association) ballpark — but approval for such an authority is far from assured. The authority would be responsible for funding a new Minnesota Vikings stadium and a renovation […]
Saints jump on Metrodome deflation with whoopee-cushion promotion
In celebration of the 30th Anniversary of “Inflation Day” of the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, and, subsequently, the 2010 “Deflation Day,” the St. Paul Saints (independent; American Association) announced a Metrodome Whoopee Cushion giveaway during the 2011 season. The first 2,500 fans attending the Saints vs. Sioux Falls Pheasants game on Saturday, May 14 will […]