The panel overseeing the construction of a new $975 million Vikings stadium in downtown Minneapolis on Thursday released the project’s final environmental impact statement – hundreds of pages of data and analysis.
The documents can be found on the Minnesota Sports Facilities Authority website.
There did not appear to be any show-stopping developments in the dense pages of the report. And there’s still more work to be done – the report states that soil contamination will be further studied and mitigated as needed. The new stadium is to be constructed on the site of the Metrodome in an area that once was home to major industrial facilities, the Associated Press reports.
The environmental reports lists a wide variety of issues to be addressed in detail. FOX 9 lists a few, among them issues related to wastewater, vehicle-related air emissions, odors, noise and dust.
The AP picks out a few other tidbits gleaned from the report: The lights in the gleaming, glassy new structure will be turned off overnight in the spring and fall to minimize risks to migrating birds. And the new building will be more efficient – it’ll use just 10 million gallons of water a year, compared to 18 million gallons that go down the drain at the Metrodome.
The Vikings unveiled plans for the new stadium in May. Team and stadium panel officials have said crews will begin demolishing the Metrodome after the 2013 season. They aim to open the new 1.6 million-square-foot, 65,000-seat venue for the 2016 season. The team will play at the University of Minnesota’s TCF Bank Stadium in 2014 and 2015.
