Vikings offer $45 million for StarTrib land

The Minnesota Vikings have tentatively agreed to buy four city blocks for $45 million from Avista Capital Partners, owners of the Star Tribune, as part of a broader plan to build a football stadium and develop surrounding land in downtown Minneapolis, sources close to the sale confirmed Thursday.

The Vikings, as part of the transaction, would also have a right of first refusal to later buy the newspaper's longtime main office building, though that block is not included in the sale. Sources close to the negotiations said the sale could be finalized within days but cautioned it could still unravel.

Though details were sketchy -- both the newspaper and the team had little to say Thursday -- the sale would give the Vikings four blocks that mainly have been used by the newspaper for surface parking. But the area also includes another large office building and an older warehouse facility.

The four blocks have been seen as critical to Vikings owner Zygi Wilf's plans to build a stadium on the site of the nearby Metrodome, the team's home since the early 1980s.

Star Tribune publisher Par Ridder said Thursday he "was not in a position to comment" on the possible sale. OhSang Kwon, a partner with Avista, said no deal had been reached.


Click on the headline to read the full story by Mike Kaszuba and Paul Levy in the Star Tribune