Minnesota Vikings, University of Minnesota sign multi-million-dollar contract for use of TCF Bank Stadium

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The Minnesota Vikings will cover all expenses of game-day activities and other impacts on the surrounding communities—and will contribute to the Good Neighbor Fund—when they move into TCF Bank Stadium to play for two to four seasons beginning in the fall of 2014.The University of Minnesota Board of Regents approved these provisions on May 10 as part of a contract that allows the Vikings to rent the stadium for $300,000 per game for 10 Sunday games in each of two seasons. If the Vikings remain longer, the rent will increase.In addition, the Vikings will contribute $90,000 a year to the Good Neighbor Fund created by the Minnesota Legislature to ameliorate the TCF Bank Stadium’s impact on the neighborhood and will contribute an additional $35,000 in in-kind work to improve the communities.The Regents’ facilities and operations committee took a recess from its regular business on May 9 and then reconvened with a larger media presence to approve the contract, which runs to over 50 pages.  Representatives of the University and the Vikings answered questions from the press.“The tone of this is very good,” said Regent Dean E. Johnson, who chaired the committee meeting. “We want to be good neighbors to what is one of the most popular sports teams in the nation and a valuable Minnesota asset.”Explaining the contract to the committee and the press were: Pam Wheelock, vice president of university services; Mark B. Rotenberg, the University’s chief legal officer; Lester Bagley, Minnesota Vikings vice president for stadium development; and Kevin Warren, Minnesota Vikings vice president of legal affairs and chief administrative officer.Reporters asked about the in-kind contributions.”We intend to have a volunteer network similar to what they have in downtown Minneapolis, the Downtown Improvement District, where they have folks walking around and kind of telling people where to go to ensure we’re good neighbors,” Bagley said.Bagley said the Vikings have vast social networking that can provide specific help for fans on parking and traffic. They could also promote neighborhood activities and businesses, he said.Bagley said negotiations with neighbors began one year ago after the Regents approved a resolution of intent to lease the stadium to the Vikings.One of the negotiators disagreed with Bagley’s description of what constitutes an in-kind contribution.In an interview, Ted Tucker, chairman of the University District Alliance, welcomed the idea of using the ambassadors to help fans navigate the neighborhood, but said that falls under the game-day expenses that the Vikings are obligated to provide under the contract.Nonetheless, he expressed pride in the contract—for which he and Steve Banks, a resident of Prospect Park, negotiated on behalf of the neighborhoods.Tucker agreed that building playgrounds and planting trees would be considered in-kind contributions if the neighborhoods want them. Wheelock also said beautification programs and tree plantings would help, but she said details still have to be worked out.“We believe,” Tucker said, “that a season of Vikings play at TCF places a greater burden on the surrounding community because of the following factors: more fans at each game, more games per season, more fans of drinking age, fans less familiar with the University District, and games on Sunday.”In the coming seasons, he said, “there could be no weekends without large football crowds during the fall seasons in which the Vikings play at TCF.”The agreement recognizes that the Vikings can bring “unique resources” to the district and will play only a few seasons here, Tucker said.“In crafting this agreement, the U of M listened carefully to Steve’s and my advice about community engagement and, speaking for myself, I think this is a reasonable plan. Continue Reading

University of Minnesota plans tailgate lot for students

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University of Minnesota students may soon be able to enjoy food, alcohol and entertainment outside TCF Bank Stadium before Gophers football games.In an attempt to bring more students to the stadium, the University is creating a proposal for a student tailgate parking lot across the street from the student entrance of TCF Bank Stadium.Student groups on campus have pushed for a student tailgate lot in the past few years.Nearly a dozen tailgate lots surround the area within a few blocks from the stadium, but none are designated solely for students.Executive associate athletics director David Benedict said the Victory Lot — a parking lot northeast of the stadium behind the Thompson Center for Environmental Management — is the only location the University is considering.The Office of the President organized a committee to begin the design of the tailgate lot. Some of the committee members include University Services, Parking and Transportation Services, University Police, the athletics department and the Office for Student Affairs.Members of the committee met with student organization leaders last month to address what provisions students would want the tailgate lot to have.“I think that the fact that they came to students first really speaks to how much they want it to benefit students,” said Joelle Stangler, a Minnesota Student Association member who attended both meetings. “I felt it went really well.”MSA was one of 55 student groups at the meetings, Benedict said, which took place at the stadium over the course of two days.The lot will be structured similarly to current University tailgating lots, but students discussed 12 to 15 “issues” concerning the proposed student tailgate lot, said Amelious Whyte, assistant dean of student affairs.“It’s different from the regular tailgating lots,” he said. “And so that will bring some different challenges.”The proposal would allow all students to enter the lot. The University will probably charge for parking reservations, Stangler said.Students supported allowing alcohol and food in the lots, and they showed interest in having entertainment within the lot on special occasions, Whyte said.Both minors and adults who are older than 21 would be allowed in. Continue Reading

House passes higher education budget that would freeze tuition

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In a vote that some lawmakers hailed as a first step toward curbing the rising costs of college, the House on Thursday passed an omnibus bill that would freeze tuition for two years at both of Minnesota’s public higher education systems.House members voted 86-44 to approve a plan that would spend $2.72 billion on higher education over the next two years, an increase of about $150 million over current spending. Most of the new money would fund a tuition freeze for resident undergraduates at both the University of Minnesota and the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system. Research and new initiatives would get a much smaller slice.“It is time to send a strong message to the institutions,” said Rep. Ryan Winkler (DFL-Golden Valley). If the public puts more money into higher education, “The students are the ones that should benefit.”Thursday’s floor debate on the omnibus higher education finance bill followed more than a dozen committee hearings at which House members picked apart the budgets of MnSCU and the university. Some legislators have criticized both systems for what they see as unnecessarily steep tuition hikes and excessive administrative spending.Winkler was quick to add that lawmakers, through votes cast over many years, share responsibility for the costs borne by today’s students. Continue Reading

Dean Eric Schwartz, nominated to Commission on International Religious Freedom, heads Humphrey with humility

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On a shelf in a large office overlooking the University of Minnesota West Bank sits a framed photograph of two men.In it, Eric Schwartz attempts to detail a migration issue while former President Bill Clinton looks down, smiling.“And as I’m briefing him, he reaches down to my shirt and starts adjusting my tie,” said Schwartz, who heads the University’s Humphrey School of Public Affairs.Growing up in New York, Schwartz never imagined he’d meet the president — let alone joke with him.“I’ve been very lucky in many respects,” said Schwartz, whom President Barack Obama nominated to the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom earlier this month.Although he’s been at the University for only 18 months, Schwartz has traveled throughout the developing world for more than 30 years, negotiating with countless world leaders and establishing himself as a national authority on international relations.Still, Schwartz is reserved, speaking only of his accolades when pressed and constantly attributing his success to good fortune.As a kid, Schwartz and his identical twin brother, now a federal public defender, always knew they’d work in public service.“My parents were very interested in the world outside of our home,” Schwartz said, “and very committed to the idea that we all have an obligation to serve others.”After graduating from Binghamton University, New York University’s law school, and Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, Schwartz landed his first job at Human Rights Watch, an international advocacy organization, which he called his “big career break.”Since then, Schwartz has worked in public service with the United Nations, under President Clinton’s administration at the National Security Council and at many humanitarian foundations.During his time in the White House, Schwartz was very influential in Clinton’s decision to join the International Criminal Court, which prosecutes against crimes such as genocide.Most recently before joining the Humphrey School, Schwartz served at the Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration in the U.S. Department of State under then-Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, whom he described as a “wonderful boss.”There, he said his greatest accomplishment was doubling the funding for the State Department to support newly arrived refugees.Despite his impressive résumé, Schwartz said he’s faced some disappointment in his career.“You don’t always hit a home run or even get a base hit every time you step up to the plate,” he said. “Though overall, my career has been extremely gratifying.”Schwartz took over as Humphrey dean in October 2011 and said he’s enjoyed his time on the job.“It’s fun to be around young people who are so inspired and so committed to not only doing well, but doing good,” he said.Laura Bloomberg, executive director of Humphrey’s Center for Integrative Leadership, said Schwartz is a very inclusive decision-maker, which makes him a pleasure to work with.“He has a terrific sense of humor,” she said. “He’s a very jovial guy.”Schwartz came to the Humphrey School with the intention of internationalizing the curriculum and establishing ties between the school and Washington.“Our students and our faculty should be influencing and informing the policy discussion on the biggest issues that the world confronts,” he said.As far as Larry Jacobs is concerned, Schwartz has exceeded expectations.“He’s a pretty rare talent. The Humphrey School is lucky to have him,” said Jacobs, the director of Humphrey’s Center for the Study of Politics and Governance.Jacobs said Schwartz was the “the right guy at the right moment” as student interest in international affairs has increased in recent years.Outside of work, Schwartz enjoys vacationing at the beach with his wife and two teenage daughters.He can also be found at the campus recreational center, where he has run into students in the past.“I’m always a little embarrassed,” he joked.Schwartz said he advises students interested in public affairs to get involved and network while they’re young.“Get out there,” he said. “Get a sense of what matters to you.”He’s always found his work to be gratifying, but Schwartz said he hopes the peak of his career is yet to come.“The focus of a career in public life is on something that is broader than your own well-being. Continue Reading

Bell Museum could get new life, after almost two decades of pushing for renovations

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Susan Weller spent Christmas Eve 2008 at the Bell Museum of Natural History.But the first-year museum director didn’t go to catch up on work or for a holiday party. A pipe had burst on the third floor, and the museum’s famous dioramas were in danger.“That night was supposed to be a family gathering,” she said. “And instead I was mopping water.”The museum floods often because of its antiquated 1930s-era plumbing system, one of several outdated features of the roughly 70-year-old building that puts the museum’s valuable exhibits at risk.After nearly 20 years of requests, the Bell Museum may finally receive funding to build a new 83,000-square foot facility and a 120-seat planetarium on the University of Minnesota’s St. Paul campus.Rep. Alice Hausman, DFL-St. Paul, included $47.5 million to be allocated for the project in her $800 million bonding bill. Continue Reading

Both Fairview merger proposals axed

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Amid controversy and concern from all sides, proposals from both Sanford Health and the University of Minnesota to merge with Fairview Health Services were nixed Wednesday.The proposal from South Dakota-based Sanford Health, which came to light in late March, drew concerns from state officials and others about how the merger would affect the academic mission of the University’s Medical Center, which Fairview controls.“Sanford Health has a philosophical policy of ‘only going where we are invited,’” Sanford CEO Kelby Krabbenhoft said in a statement Wednesday.Sanford Health declined to comment further.Fairview’s interim CEO, Chuck Mooty, said in a statement Wednesday that the news of Sanford’s withdrawal “comes as a disappointment.”Mooty added that Fairview will not consider the University’s proposal at this time.University President Eric Kaler had proposed in January that the University take control of Fairview, saying it would be in the best interest of the state and the school.That Fairview won’t consider the University’s proposal “is disappointing, given my strong belief that the status quo is not sustainable,” Kaler said Wednesday in a letter to administrators and Academic Health Center faculty and staff.Mooty added in his statement that while the board doesn’t feel that now is the time for the University to acquire Fairview, the two will work on strengthening their existing partnership. He also said Fairview would continue with its search for a new CEO.Minnesota Attorney General Lori Swanson said in a statement Wednesday that she received Sanford’s statement but had not yet spoken to Fairview or the University, adding she appreciated the reinstated CEO search.At a hearing she held this week, Swanson expressed concerns about the merger, including namesake T. Denny Sanford’s past donations to University athletics.Leaders from both Sanford and Fairview said at the hearing that they’d stop merger discussions if the University objected.On Monday, legislators introduced two bills that would have outlawed the acquisition.Rep. Joe Atkins, DFL-Inver Grove Heights, who proposed the two bills with Rep. Dan Schoen, DFL-St. Paul Park, said in a statement that the bills still address a relevant problem.“Another non-Minnesota-based entity could still try to acquire Fairview, and we would once again be in the same potential situation where the University of Minnesota Medical Center would be not under Minnesota control,” he said, adding that he would still hold hearings on his legislation and request that Fairview’s CEO attend.Hailey Colwell and Katherine Lymn contributed to this report. Continue Reading