The Minnesota Sports Facilities Authority has approved a stadium lease and revenue deal with the Minnesota Vikings. The deal includes a 30 year lease and would require that fans pay a personal seat license fee.
The Star Tribune reports that the agreement calls for charging a one-time, personal seat license fee for three-fourths of the stadiums 65,000 seats. Those fees will range from a low of $500 per seat to a high of $10,000, the average is about $2,500 per seat
The Pioneer Press reports, that Governor Mark Dayton said after seeing the deal Thursday that he preferred that no money from personal seat licenses be charged, but that the state had to make a deal to keep the team.
The fees will are expected to generate about $100 million dollars of the Vikings $477 million dollar portion of the stadium cost, according to a report from the Associated Press.
The personal seat license fees have been used by 17 of the NFL’s 32 franchises to build or remodel stadiums.
#Vikings Reportedly 47,000 seats at new stadium subject to seat licenses. As predicted, Stadium Authority got taken to the cleaners.
— Ron Rosenbaum (@RonSRosenbaum) October 3, 2013
MSFA: Plans have already been pared back $20-30M, to meet $975M budget, but "value engineering" may help restore some amenities.
— Tim Nelson (@timnelson_mpr) October 3, 2013
Vikings VP Lester Bagley: Pacts are "significant milestones. now we can move forward to construction, breaking ground."
— Brian Bakst (@Stowydad) October 3, 2013
