The Star Tribune is officially in the hands of Glen Taylor.
The newspaper says Taylor finalized the deal Monday to purchase the state’s largest news organization. The move marks the first time in 16 years the business will be owned solely by a Minnesotan, after the Cowles family sold the Star Tribune to the McClatchy company for $1.2 billion.
Taylor, the Mankato billionaire businessman who owns 80 businesses including the Timberwolves and Lynx, purchased the Star Tribune as an individual apart from the Taylor Corp.
While the official terms have not been disclosed, Taylor reportedly said the purchase price was around $100 million, the newspaper says.
The finalization of the deal comes just over three months after reports emerged that Taylor was in talks to buy the Star Tribune. The newspaper confirmed Taylor’s offer a couple days later, and he signed the purchase agreement at the end of May.
In the interim, the Star Tribune announced that it was moving its newsroom and headquarters to Capella Tower in downtown Minneapolis in 2015 – a move that will come 95 years after the paper sunk its roots in the eastern edge of downtown at 425 Portland Avenue.
Now that the Strib has a new owner in Glen Taylor, here's a look back at the company's history.http://t.co/FZKxG29sPL
— Todd Stone (@_ToddStone) June 30, 2014
In February, the newspaper finalized the sale of five blocks it owned on its current site, paving a path for the $400 million Downtown East project. Four blocks in the deal were sold to developer Ryan Cos., and one block to the Minnesota Sports Facilities Authority, which is overseeing construction of the new $1 billion Vikings stadium.
The deal for land earned the Star Tribune $38.5 million, which the paper says allowed the company to reduce the vast majority of its debt.
The Star Tribune Monday called the sale to Taylor “a pivotal moment” for the paper, which emerged from bankruptcy in 2009. The Star Tribune reportedly has the seventh largest Sunday circulation in the U.S.
The organization notes that Taylor, 73, has said he will appoint his daughter, Jean Taylor, to the board of directors, but he will not have a hand in management of the paper.
The Mankato Free Press said Taylor largely built his wealth from the Taylor Corp. printing company, which began as Carlson Craft.
According to Forbes’ billionaire’s list, Taylor’s net worth is listed at $1.8 billion.
