Daily Herald editorial

It should come as no surprise that the latest attempt to put together a plan to buy the Minnesota Vikings a new stadium has hit a roadblock. During a month when most Minnesotans received higher-than-ever property tax bills, it is likely to prove nearly impossible to convince taxpayers that chipping in to buy a stadium is a good idea.

A state lawmaker had said that he would on Monday unveil a stadium funding plan. Through a spokesman, Rep. Terry Morrow, DFL-St. Peter, changed course and said that he “feels his proposal can be improved.” Whatever the proposal was to have been, it almost certainly could be improved if it involved using taxpayer money to build the $1.1 billion stadium that the Vikings want. If lawmakers believe there is room to further increase taxes, via any means at all, the resulting revenue ought to go into education or transportation, both of which are major needs and both of which would deliver immediate benefits to many taxpayers. But it’s hard to believe anyone would propose more taxes at a moment when Minnesotans are angry enough over what this year’s Legislature did to their tax bills.

The team, meanwhile, said that it wants all income and sales tax revenue that the Vikings generate to be designated for building a stadium. The idea, apparently, is that if the Vikings weren’t here, the state would have none of the tax revenue that the team generates. The same logic, of course, applies to most businesses and individuals. Should each of them get to redirect their taxes into projects of their own choosing? Of course not. The result would be anarchy.

The only fair way to build a new stadium is for the team and its customers, the fans, to pay for it. If that can not be done then the Vikings, like every other business, will need to consider whether their operating model makes sense. We hope the Vikings can find a way to build a new stadium. We just don’t think Minnesota taxpayers should foot the bill.