St. Paul Super Bowl documents detail snow removal, security considerations

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In May of this year, Minneapolis was selected as the host city for the 2018 Super Bowl game, after a coordinated bidding process that involved local corporate leaders, municipal officials, and the Minnesota Sports Facilities Authority (MSFA). The formal bid for the event has been withheld from public records requests by the MSFA as “nonpublic” data under the Minnesota Data Practices Act. Consequently, the full scope of the public’s obligations to provide financial and material support to the event remain unclear. Continue Reading

Former Viking Chris Kluwe to sue Vikings over homophobia allegations

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Former Vikings punter Chris Kluwe announced on Tuesday he will be suing the team after the team failed to disclose the results of an internal investigation prompted by Kluwe’s allegations of rampant homophobia in the team’s management.At a press conference at the IDS Tower in downtown Minneapolis on Tuesday, Kluwe chastised the Vikings for failing to release the report on an investigation into homophobia.“It’s transparently obvious to me that the Vikings are covering up the truth,” said Kluwe’s attorney Clayton Halunen. “We have no choice but to litigate at this point. Kluwe willingly cooperated with the Vikings’ investigation – all he ever wanted was for the truth to come out.”On Jan. 2, former Viking punter Chris Kluwe made some startling claims in a post on Deadspin:We were laughing over one of the recent articles I had written supporting same-sex marriage rights, and one of my teammates made a joking remark about me leading the Pride parade. As we sat down in our chairs, Mike Priefer, in one of the meanest voices I can ever recall hearing, said: ‘We should round up all the gays, send them to an island, and then nuke it until it glows.’ The room grew intensely quiet, and none of the players said a word for the rest of the meeting. Continue Reading

COMMUNITY VOICES | Celebrities make a child’s dream come true in St. Paul

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Minneapolis, Minnesota native and NHL athlete Dustin Byfuglien was one of the many celebrities who participated in Celebrity Sweat’s annual celebrity softball event to support over a dozen local children organizations.On Saturday, July 12, the Saint Paul Saints hosted Celebrity Sweat’s Ninth Annual Celebrity Softball Challenge at Midway Stadium. This event included a softball match between team captains Daunte Culpepper, former NFL All-Pro quarterback of the Minnesota Vikings, against Five-time Heavyweight Boxing World Champion Evander “Real Deal” Holyfield. There were also pregame festivities for fans and challenges sponsored by DSW (Designer Shoe Warehouse).“I’m here for the kids, the charity and [Celebrity] Sweat. It’s an all-around good thing for a Saturday afternoon,” Byfuglien said.One of the children’s organizations benefiting from this event was Hope Kids, an organization supporting children who are facing life threatening illnesses. Gabby Madenwaldt has been volunteering for Hope Kids for nearly half a decade and said it’s a “good [program] for children with illnesses and I’m glad to be a part of it.” At the event, she helped check-in families who attended including mother Tawana Terrell, whom arrived with her family.Terrell has been with the program since 2007 as she’s the mother of a child who went on to become a cancer survivor. Continue Reading

Youth, sports, and life

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It is hard for me to become enamored with sports where the only scoring is penalty kicks or multiple overtimes. But watching what I have of the World Cup has been an education. A lot of people want to guide kids who might play American football into soccer, but the World Cup shows that the image of “safe sport” is an illusion. Not many kids who play American football end their season with cracked vertebrae like the leading scorer for Brazil. I’m sure our football beats the brain up worse than soccer, but the excessive use of the head for ball movement in soccer can’t be particularly good for the brain either. Continue Reading

OPINION | Taking the public out of a public park

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Sharing public amenities is only slightly less controversial than funding public amenities. The new Vikings stadium adjoins an equally new Minneapolis public park. The Minnesota Vikings and the Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission retain exclusive use for 80-100 days per year. The park represents a new economic development direction that presents itself as one thing, a park, while behaving as another, an athletic performance venue.

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