Vikings, Avista talk again over Star Tribune land deal
Months after the Minnesota Vikings canceled a $45 million deal to buy Star Tribune property near the Metrodome, the two sides resumed negotiations and the Vikings continued to buy property in the area that would surround their proposed new stadium.
As Tuesday’s deadline for bids on the Star Tribune’s five blocks near the Metrodome passed, Avista Capital Partners, the newspaper’s parent company, remained mum about potential buyers. But Avista Vice President Greg Evans acknowledged in an interview April 17 that the company has had several discussions with the Vikings’ owners concerning the 12.4 acres of land — a point verified Tuesday by Vikings Vice President Lester Bagley.
Evans declined to comment Tuesday, but other area property owners believe Vikings owner Zygi Wilf still envisions building a stadium on the Metrodome site and developing the land around it.
Just days after the Minnesota Vikings killed the deal to buy four city blocks owned by the Star Tribune this past August, local property owner Mike McDonald said he received a call from Vikings representatives telling him the Wilfs still were interested in his property on 3rd Street near Chicago Avenue.
McDonald’s family owns A.Y. McDonald Manufacturing and purchased land in downtown Minneapolis nearly a century ago. A.Y. McDonald sold a section of that property to the Wilfs Oct. 11, McDonald said Tuesday.
Basant Kharbanda, another downtown property owner who said he was contacted by Zygi Wilf, said the Wilfs have asked some landowners if they would abide by development plans the Wilfs have choreographed — even if the Wilfs don’t buy their property.
"But they’ve always concentrated on the Star Tribune land first," Kharbanda said months after the original Vikings-Avista deal dissolved.
Changes in circumstances
That deal was made before the land compensation hearings for the Twins ballpark revealed that the land on which a new Twins ballpark is being built was valued at far less than what the Vikings agreed to pay for the Star Tribune land that would surround their proposed $954 million stadium.
Tags: portland, tribune
Sarah Alton rearranged = R SATAN HALO…
I appear to have misplaced this:/sarcasm
The section about the traffic density in Houstron versus Portland rings especially false. I’ve seen traffic in both cities. Fighting Houston traffic is a massive nightmare. I’d pick Portland any day of the week.
Oregon or Maine? Why would anyone get in the car after watching their neighbors get pwned? I would walk to work.
His opponent was disqualified because he had a nasty divorce and stepped down…Alan Keyes replaced him in time for the election.
Then Portland is fucked, I still don’t care.
From the comments: Obama - the Candidate as Anti-Christ. Consider his rockstar popularity among young voters, his ability to continuously lie without impunity, his connections to mob members and terrorist both real and wannabes. His strong and unscrupulous desire for raw power, at any cost, regardless what it does to others, (he became senator simply by disqualifying his opponents). His empty words and changing promises, his desire to be friends with those who wish to destroy us. His wife Michele has expressed her hatred for this country and has publicly announced her husband as the messiah. Perhaps you will need to explain to God why you voted for an antichrist, but I am not going to be on that dark list on judgment day. Posted by: Sarah Alton | May 18, 2008 7:18 PMwtf.
i know, i tend to be a bit picky …ooooh, LOOK!…a scab!!…..//BRB!
you’ll get 404 errors linking to scientific american?
In fairness…This was a few years ago…It wasn’t snow, it was 3 inches of frozen rain on top of snow.It was also on top of a hill (not readily apparent from the video.)
That’s America.
We had a huge ice storm in ‘98 I think it was in eastern part of Canada. Was so kick ass, lol.
They weren’t there to see Obama. They were there to see the Decemberistshttp://www.decemberists.com/news.aspx