SECOND UPDATE: So the Vikings chose Arden Hills for their billion dollar retractable roof stadium. Zygi Wilf called it "the ideal site." It'll also cost $300 million more, $1.2 billion instead of $900 million at the Metrodome. I'd expect the Vikings are paying the same amount either way. Way to stick it to Minnesota taxpayers! Too bad there won't be any roads leading to it. Doesn't sound ideal to me.
UPDATE: It look like they'll be playing in Arden Hills. A press conference is soon to follow.
After the Vikings stadium bill died in the Minnesota legislature last year, I was a little concerned that the Vikings might move out of the Minneapolis/St. Paul area. But new Governor Mark Dayton has been a big proponent of a new stadium, and now I'd be shocked if the Vikings left Minnesota.
Last week, it seemed like the Vikings were headed for Arden Hills, but the powers that be won't give up on building a stadium in downtown Minneapolis. There are a couple of options, including the current Metrodome site. From Daily Norseman:
With the way the stadium proposal stands now, with the state, a local equity partner, and the Vikings each covering a third of the cost of a new, roofed stadium, Minneapolis isn't capable of being an equity partner. That being the case, Arden Hills seems the likeliest location for a Vikings stadium. However, if Minneapolis convinces the legislature to levy a regional/state tax, or if the business investors in Minneapolis raise private funds for a Minneapolis stadium, then that would seem to favor one of the Minneapolis stadium sites.
But for Viking fans, this is all about keeping the team:
I don't really care whether the Vikings building a stadium at the Metrodome site, the Farmers Market site, or the Arden Hills site. So long as the Vikings stay in Minnesota, I'm a happy camper. But, if the lobbying for an unlikely (under present circumstances and despite Minneapolis' newfound willingness to pay about a fourth of the cost), Minneapolis stadium endangers a deal with Arden Hills I'll be very annoyed.