Vikings add more funds for U.S. Bank Stadium construction
By Adam Carlson
The Minnesota Vikings have once again increased their contribution to U.S. Bank Stadium to ensure that the groundbreaking facility will be state of the art.
Today, the Minnesota Vikings got approval to pour even more money into U.S. Bank Stadium. The facility has already received several upgrades since its announcement, including additional big screens, a large ship with a screen for a sail, and a pedestrian land bridge.
Having increased their financial contribution to the project by 31 percent since the initial estimates according to a recent article on the MPR News website, the Vikings want to do everything in their power to ensure that the team doesn’t need to make major changes to the stadium in the future by adding many features now instead of waiting.
This concept shouldn’t be a major surprise, as the Wilf family made their money in real estate to help purchase the team and understand the value of investing in a project like U.S. Bank Stadium.
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To help pitch in for the additional funding, the state of Minnesota has agreed to add $50 million in private funding. Executive director Ted Mondale spoke about why that money was needed and where it will go in the project:
"“For instance, the ship,” he said. “Maybe the bridge.” He was referring to theceremonial boat planned for the plaza outside the stadium and a pedestrian bridge to keep people off nearby light rail tracks.”"
Michele Kelm-Helgen, chair of the stadium authority, loves the extra money that the Minnesota Vikings and the state of Minnesota are devoting to the project.
"“Their putting additional money into the building is giving us a better building, No. 1, and No. 2, protection against having to make significant cuts in order to keep the kind of facility that we’d originally designed as construction costs go up,” she said."
U.S. Bank Stadium is expected to be ready for the 2016 season for the Minnesota Vikings. As of this writing, it was announced that the facility’s construction is over 85% complete, which is a good sign for the grand opening staying on schedule.