Transcripts

text | pdf |

---

MICHAEL KHOO: Last November, it appeared as though there might not be a 2002 Minnesota Twins season. Baseball owners agreed to eliminate or contract two franchises, and the Twins were seen as a more than likely candidate. After much legal maneuvering, the team took the field last spring, only to face by late summer, the possibility of a players strike. A threat that was defused in the final hours of Labor negotiations.

Having survived obstacle after obstacle to reach the American League championships, from the bleachers, the team seems somehow blessed. Independence party gubernatorial candidate Tim Penny, says the Twins unlikely 2002 saga is renewing interest in providing for the team's future.

TIM PENNY: We're back in the euphoria of having a team that's winning again. These things do ebb and flow, as you know, but it's certainly helpful. It reminds us that in the final analysis, we don't want to lose professional sports.

MICHAEL KHOO: But the team has said and continues to say, that without a new ballpark, the team's long-term survival is in serious doubt. Lawmakers working with Governor Jesse Ventura, helped craft a stadium solution earlier this year, but the plan failed to bring the team and potential host Cities together.

Twins spokesman Dave Saint Peter says team officials hope they can build on their momentum and produce new ballpark legislation in 2003. Saint Peter says the face of the debate has changed remarkably over the summer.

DAVE ST. PETER: The threat of contraction is gone, at least for the next several years. The new collective bargaining agreement has been reached, so we have taken steps to address the basic economic flaws in the game and hopefully creating a new system that will enable teams such as Minnesota and Milwaukee and Pittsburgh to compete. And obviously, our team has had a magical year.

MICHAEL KHOO: DFL gubernatorial candidate Roger Moe says he's willing to reopen the ballpark debate to address lingering concerns. Last sessions plan called for state financing of a $330 million facility, with the debt to be repaid by the team in a city partner. But Moe says the pool of host communities may have been too small.

ROGER MOE: The most frequent complaint about the legislation comes from, I think, Minneapolis, that wanted Hennepin County added as a part of that legislation. I've said that if the Hennepin County Board approves and wants to be added, I would support that legislation.

MICHAEL KHOO: Penny, Moe, GOP candidate Tim Pawlenty, and Green Party nominee Ken Pentel, all say they'd allow a minor change to the legislation, such as opening it up for County participation. But Pawlenty, who voted against the bill in his role as House Majority Leader, says he'll fight attempts to increase the state's participation. He does, however, leave the door open for a joint Vikings University of Minnesota football stadium. Pawlenty says he'd support a state contribution for a college level facility for the Gophers.

TIM PAWLENTY: But they don't need a stadium, anything like an NFL stadium. And if the Vikings wanted to be a partner and pay fully for their share, and so that the state wasn't subsidizing their share of the stadium, I might be open to that.

MICHAEL KHOO: A Vikings consultant says the team continues to work with the University to draft stadium design and operating plans for a $500 million stadium. The report is expected by early December. Of all the major party candidates, however, green nominee Pentel remains the most reluctant to discuss pro sports facilities.

KEN PENTEL: Professional sports, to me, is not even on the table right now for the things that Minnesota has to deal with. As long as our fish are unedible, and our water is undrinkable, and the Mississippi River is being turned into a sludge canal, it makes me sad how much time and energy gets spent on this diversion.

MICHAEL KHOO: But stadium talk is unlikely to fade anytime soon, nor are its complexities. Vikings owner Red McCombs, and Twins owner Carl Pohlad, have both indicated their willingness to sell their teams, creating the possibility of a new cast of characters for next year's stadium fight. At the Capitol, I'm Michael Khoo, Minnesota Public Radio.