Formo said: 
MPLS and the TC have some of the nations most diverse entertainment options. And with the economy as it is, why would someone pony up over priced NFL tickets to watch a 3-13 team when they could spend that same money on a basketball or hockey team that has shown life recently? I can't blame the, as you losers call it, 'fair-weather fans' for opting to spend their precious money elsewhere. Things are tight, and I'm stretching to renew my Gopher tickets this year.
Losers.. really you purple hued little.. [grin1]
My only point is this.. and hence the giggles.
For the last couple years all we have heard was we need to build a stadium.. we need to shell out the money of our pockets to build a college stadium and a pro stadium within what 2 miles of each other.
Instead of publicly funding a stadium that would have fulfilled both needs and saved the public millions if not billions in construction and maintenance costs.. the public and fan base demanded two independent stadiums.
But publicly, the Vikes have now taken the NFL out predicting that they not be able to fill the stadiums. Which for the benefit of their fans within the state is wise.. since they are funding part of the new stadium. Via tax base or spending money in attending games / spending money on Viking merchandise.
Don't forget, the Vikings are taking a bite of the leagues shared revenues because they are towards the bottom of the revenue earned pool. So that makes it a concern to us, as we help fill those coffers. So yes.. it is our business in a sense to raise concerns on whether you can fill your stadium and carry your share of the overall revenue pool.
So I agree that times are tough and money may be more wisely spent than on attending a game or purchasing a season package.
But where was that mindset in the planning of these venues?
That is all.. nothing more.
Quoting the "awesomeness" of that moment when cost becomes a reality... [grin1]
I love the last quote in this threads context.. apparently there is a lack of people willing to pony up. [aiee]
Formo said:
Love that there will be 3 new stadiums in town (4 if you consider the X's 10+ years as 'new'). It just adds to the dynamics of the Twin Cities' awesomeness.
Formo said:
Vikings stadium doesn't involve general fund monies. Unless I gamble via pull tabs or pay for the suites (10% tax on suites is a backup source), not a dime of my money goes toward the Vikes stadium. The Bank, while getting public monies, I'm not sure the details of.. Except that it was built on some sort of bonding/loans from the state... So the state will recoup their money.
Yes, the economy is still struggling.. but right now the state is reaping what it sowed years ago (ignoring any and all stadium bills). It is what it is.
As far as doing things on the cheap.. That's EXACTLY what they did with the Metrodump. And look what's going to happen with it 30 years later. No no, it is NEVER the time to do something 'on the cheap' because the economy is piss poor right now. You always get what you pay for, and hopefully the state will learn from it's mistakes that is the 'awesome' planning they had for the dump.
I'm also a bit of a purist. College football needs to be played on a college campus, in a college stadium. The Dome KILLED the Gophers ability to have a great college atmosphere. For those that didn't really know much about college football (which is a lot up here), they viewed the Gophs in the Dome as a high school game in an NFL stadium.. There was no atmosphere. And the awesome shuttles students had to take from campus to Minneapolis Downtown East, just killed the fickle fanbase. No no.. Screw sharing a stadium. It's cheap, tacky, and blows for one of the fanbases.
Formo said: I'm assuming you meant to quote me.
Our elected officials have decided as such because they got more calls, letters, and emails than they had EVER gotten before by far on passing this stadium bill. So, in a sense, they were mostly just following constituent 'orders'.
I never said the deal was perfect and I won't say that there won't be some sort of social cost (obviously because I just don't know).. But what I WILL say is this: The NFL is bigger than it's ever been. There are only 32 teams in the NFL and there are more cities/markets that want an NFL team than there are NFL teams. So simple economics say, there's a higher demand than there is supply. Which means the price to have an NFL team is going to be steep. If the state of Minnesota didn't pony up some how, another market/city would have gladly ponied up.
And I, for one, am happy we will pay our dues.
Formo said: Yeah, no doubt.. You ain't paying for it, and you ain't spending money to attend it's events.. So I don't get how you get to say that it isn't worth it.. =P