He says his plan does not use state money that would exist without the teams and stadiums. "It's clear the Twins and Vikings are not going to stay in the Metrodome much longer," Pawlenty says.
His plan leaves the choice of sites up to a new Minnesota Stadium Authority, who would then negotiate terms with the communities and the teams. His financing plan is more of a range of options, many of them recommended by his bipartisan stadium screening committee.
Pawlenty added two options not in his committee's recommendations:
* A unique form of tax increment financing, in which teams would benefit from sales and income revenues that arise from the stadiums and the surrounding districts. For instance, that could mean about $7 million a year for the Twins.
* The other is an arbitrage plan--the stadium would benefit from the difference between investment earnings and bond payments to pay debt.
Other funding sources recommended by the governor include ticket taxes, parking surcharges, personal seat licenses, cable television fees and taxes on souvenirs sold in the stadiums.
Pawlenty says teams would be responsible for about a third of the cost of the stadiums. Their contributions could come in the form of up-front payments, annual payments or revenue from naming rights or personal seat licenses. Because the stadiums likely would be roofed, that option could push the price tags of each to $500 million or more.
Cities could use sale of development rights around the stadiums to help finance their share, along with passing general taxes and sales taxes on food, beverages and lodging. Pawlenty would leave it up to the communities whether to require referendums on the local taxes.
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