Concerned that time is running out to land a Major League Soccer franchise for the Twin Cities, St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman said Thursday that he will lead an “all-hands-on-deck effort in the next few weeks” to build a stadium on an underdeveloped tract in the Midway area.

The mayor gave no specifics for a financing plan, saying that it was too early to say how St. Paul might assist local investors in building a $120 million soccer-only stadium, mostly with private money.

But now that Minneapolis has missed the MLS deadline for a plan to build a stadium near Target Field, Coleman said, the 34.5-acre site at Snelling and University Avenues represents Minnesota’s best chance to hang onto a franchise promised on the condition that it gets its own open-air field.

“I’m a firm believer that MLS will do well in Minnesota, but I also believe that the clock is ticking right now for a soccer-specific stadium,” said Coleman, who spoke on a conference call with reporters.

He said that on Wednesday he invited MLS Deputy Commissioner Mark Abbott to tour the Midway site, which includes a strip mall and vacant acreage once used by Metro Transit to store buses.

“He was very interested in doing so,” Coleman said.

MLS spokesman Dan Courtemanche confirmed Thursday that Abbott spoke late Wednesday with Coleman, but did not provide details.

“We look forward to visiting St. Paul soon,” Courtemanche said. “A date has not been set yet.”

Coleman said that a visit might have to wait until after the MLS All-Star Game later this month.

The mayor has had two informal meetings with the local ownership group led by Dr. Bill McGuire, who owns the Minnesota United FC franchise, but no specific deal has been discussed.

The investors — who include the Pohlad family and Glen Taylor, owner of the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Star Tribune — planned to use their own money to build a stadium in downtown Minneapolis, but they wanted property and sales tax exemptions that they said would make the project profitable. MLS held the group to a July 1 deadline to finalize a soccer stadium plan.

But the Legislature balked over the tax breaks and Minneapolis officials didn’t act, and the deadline passed without a plan. Last week Abbott — who grew up in Oakdale, an east metro suburb — announced that MLS would be looking at St. Paul.

The door hasn’t closed entirely on Minneapolis. Council Member Jacob Frey said Thursday that the city’s stadium working group, formed last month, has scheduled its first meeting for July 17. He denied that Coleman’s interest had spurred the city into action.

“Obviously, I’m biased in favor of Minneapolis,” Frey said. “I think Minneapolis has all the tools to make this a tremendously successful cultural infrastructure investment. My first choice is Minneapolis and my second choice is St. Paul, but I certainly don’t want to squander the opportunity for the region.”

 

Staff writers Mike Kaszuba and Eric Roper contributed to this story.

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Kevin Duchschere • 651-925-5035

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