Minnesota Sports Facilities Authority

900 South 5th Street, Minneapolis, MN 55415

For Immediate Release

Contact:

Jenn Hathaway 612-816-1710

Statement by Michele Kelm-Helgen on the Stadium Bond Sale Delay

Late Friday, a lawsuit was filed against the State of Minnesota, seeking to halt or delay the sale of bonds for the Stadium Project. A delay in the sale of bonds and funding would have a significant impact on the Stadium Project and the Ryan Downtown East Development Project. First, the Stadium Project requires approximately $28 million in funding that is to be provided by the State bond issue by the last week of January, to acquire property, pay the stadium architect and many Minnesota companies who are working or have finished scopes of work on the project. The delay of this funding also puts the 2016 opening of the stadium in jeopardy. As noted, the funding delay and subsequent delay in opening the new stadium would cause the Minnesota Vikings to play an additional year at TCF Bank Stadium, and would affect the ability of Minnesota high school and collegiate sports to play locally, and affect community events, all costing additional millions of dollars. The second serious problem with the potential funding delay, is that it not only affects the Stadium Project and its users, but would also affect the Ryan Downtown East Development Project from moving forward, jeopardizing over $400 million of private investment adjacent to the new stadium. The Downtown East Development is contingent upon the timely funding of two key land acquisitions by the Minnesota Sports Facilities Authority (MSFA). The direct impact of funding delays: The MSFA will not have funds to acquire the Downtown East Parcel and Parking Ramp. This parcel is crucial to the development of an impressive, large plaza that showcases the front of the stadium, and provides a portion of the parking spaces required by legislation. The MSFA will not have funds to acquire the Block 1 Parcel of the Downtown East Development Project which provides a portion of the parking spaces required by legislation. The delay would prevent full funding of millions of dollars in payments to Minnesota companies and the stadium architect who are currently working on the Stadium Project.

In all, hundreds of millions of dollars of development would be impacted by the delay in State funding: If the Block 1 purchase does not close in January, the skyway connection from the Stadium through the Block 1 Parking Ramp and the Ryans Downtown East development will be lost. The loss of the skyway connection would eliminate access to the Stadium to downtown hotels and other destinations. This

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would have a devastating effect on the ability of the MSFA to attract and host major national and international events. The Downtown East Development Project could be abandoned which means the loss of 5,000 jobs and the loss of over $400 million of private investment. The development of a two block Urban Green Space that is a part of the Downtown East Development Project could be lost.