November 30, 2009

Vikings turn stadium push up to 11

The full court press — or, if you prefer, the five-man blitz — is on in the Minnesota Vikings stadium campaign, as everybody and their brother grabs headlines by any means possible:

• Vikings owner Zygi Wilf took his case to the people, or at least the Austin, Minnesota, Chamber of Commerce, asserting that "It's unfortunate that many people don't want to get engaged in it because it doesn't serve their political purposes. This team belongs to the fans and the people of Minnesota." Not in any sort of legally binding sense, of course — that'd be socialism.
• Sid Hartman, every sports team owner's favorite columnist, asserts that "the chances of the Vikings getting a new stadium are going to be much better if the team continues to win, and they will as long as a healthy [Brett] Favre is around." Vikings stadium czar Lester Bagley echoes the sentiment that Minnesotans will be more willing to give public money to a team with a good quarterback (even one who'd be 43 years old at minimum by the time the new place opened), telling KARE-TV news: "Brett Favre's our best lobbyist."
• State Rep. Michael Nelson — not to be confused with Minnesota's more famous Mike Nelson — says the Metrodome needs to be replaced because it's "1970 technology" (while acknowledging that "how we pay for it is the big question"). Which is a bit odd given that the Metrodome actually opened in 1982, though it does help explain the stadium scoreboard.