Sid Hartman, whose final Star Tribune sports activities column was printed on the day he died at 100, was born in Minneapolis, and he remained steadfastly loyal to the town.
The information of Sid’s demise, on Oct. 18, 2020, broke throughout a Minnesota Vikings sport and reverberated across the sports activities world. Known by generations of Minnesotans merely as Sid, a number of years in the past Sid uttered the remark, “You could shoot a cannon off in downtown St. Paul, and you wouldn’t hit anybody.”
In his trademark blunt method, it was a means for Sid to precise what he believed was the prevalence of Minneapolis over St. Paul. Sid considered Minneapolis because the skilled sports activities universe in Minnesota.
But we live in a new sports activities period in 2026, which locations St. Paul in a co-starring function with Minneapolis. As St. Paul goes about rebuilding its economic system following the pandemic, it’s obvious that sports activities and sports activities amenities might want to play a huge half in the restoration combine.
Grand Casino Arena, in downtown St. Paul, has been house to the NHL’s Minnesota Wild since 2000. The Minnesota Frost, a part of the brand new Professional Women’s Hockey League, is taking part in in its third season in the sector. In 2027, a skilled ladies’s volleyball workforce will start play in the sector. Wild proprietor Craig Leipold is almost all proprietor of the brand new volleyball franchise.
In St. Paul’s Lowertown, the St. Paul Saints inaugurated a new ballpark in 2015. Its fastened seating capability is 7,210, which is 1,326 greater than the outdated stadium in the Midway. CHS Field drew huge crowds out of the blocks, together with some followers who purchased tickets to sit down on the grass or stand alongside railings simply past outfield play. On some nice climate days, it wasn’t uncommon to see crowds that exceeded 8,000.
The variety of video games the Saints play every season has elevated since they opened CHS Field. The membership had 50 house video games a season when the Saints have been taking part in impartial baseball. Beginning with the 2021 season, the Saints at the moment are the Triple-A affiliate for the Minnesota Twins. In 2024, the Saints attendance was 457,012 with 75 house video games.
A couple of minutes away by way of I-94, Allianz Field opened in 2019 in St. Paul’s Midway neighborhood. The Minnesota United FC skilled males’s soccer workforce is standard in the Twin Cities market, so followers usually fill the ability that seats about 19,600 individuals.
As Minnesota’s capital metropolis, St. Paul has a appreciable quantity of land dedicated to state authorities buildings, and authorities companies additionally lease substantial workplace areas. The presence of presidency employees helps to assist St. Paul eating places and different companies.
However, after the pandemic eased, many authorities employees didn’t return to downtown St. Paul. Years after Covid vaccines turned out there, some employees returned for a few days a week. That actuality dealt a harsh blow to the town’s economic system.
It has meant that St. Paul’s capability to draw guests turned much more paramount.
Reams of research exist in which economists conclude that there’s a restricted financial profit to a neighborhood internet hosting a sports activities stadium. It’s proof that’s cited when a metropolis or state is requested to subsidize the constructing or renovation of a sports activities stadium with tax {dollars}.
Often the identical research will cite a “substitution effect,” that means that if individuals didn’t spend their cash at a sport, then they’d spend the cash on different types of leisure in their neighborhood.
That argument overlooks some key issues. There is an financial profit to St. Paul if a Woodbury household goes to Grand Casino Arena for a Wild hockey sport, if a Blaine couple goes to Allianz Field for a Minnesota United FC soccer match, or if a group of buddies from Minneapolis goes to CHS Field to look at a Saints baseball sport.
If these amenities didn’t exist, individuals wouldn’t be touring to St. Paul for a sports activities leisure expertise. The “substitution effect” financial argument is sound when contemplating the breadth of the Twin Cities metro space. But it ignores the truth that some St. Paul guests are spending cash in St. Paul institutions past the sports activities venues. In addition, the job base in St. Paul is expanded as a result of individuals are working throughout the St. Paul-based sports activities amenities.
Economic infrastructure for St. Paul
In actuality, the three amenities—doubling as sports activities and occasion venues—are a huge a part of the financial infrastructure of St. Paul. Unlike a public grade faculty or highschool, these amenities go nicely past serving the wants of people that dwell throughout the boundaries of St. Paul.
That’s particularly the case throughout the month of March. This yr, individuals from each area of Minnesota got here to Grand Casino Arena to look at the Minnesota State High School Boys Hockey Tournament. Early this month, the Saint Paul Downtown Alliance introduced that downtown leaders anticipated practically 1 million individuals would go to downtown St. Paul throughout March.
The estimate was based mostly on the variety of occasions scheduled in addition to Placer.ai information, which confirmed that 937,800 individuals visited downtown St. Paul final March. The guests have been coming downtown for sports activities, arts, leisure, and cultural occasions.
March can also be a key month for St. Paul’s new mayor, Kaohly Her. She’s searching for assist from her former legislative colleagues for St. Paul initiatives.
The metropolis of St. Paul owns Grand Casino Arena, RiverCentre, and Roy Wilkins Auditorium. During the 2025 Minnesota legislative session, lawmakers didn’t assist a $395 million state funding request to improve and renovate these amenities. The complete value of renovations and enhancements was listed as $769 million.
Mayor Her diminished the entire mission value from former Mayor Melvin Carter’s proposal and she or he negotiated with the management of the Minnesota Wild.
The quantity that Her needs from state lawmakers was basically lower in half. She’s searching for $200 million from the state of Minnesota. Her’s complete mission value is $600 million—$450 million for Grand Casino Arena and $150 million for the RiverCentre and Roy Wilkins Auditorium.
Specifically for Grand Casino Arena, Her would use $125 million from the state, $162.5 million from the Minnesota Wild, and $162.5 million from the town, which it generates by extending the half-cent gross sales tax.
The Wild play 41 house video games a yr in Grand Casino Arena, however Wild proprietor Craig Leipold famous that it’s booked 150 days a yr with occasions and leisure.
It’s not onerous, in the Twin Cities, to search out individuals who don’t need a dime of their tax {dollars} to assist buildings that home skilled sports activities groups. They definitely have a proper to their opinion.
Gathering areas past sports activities venues
But decision-makers want to contemplate all the elements at play on the subject of sports activities venues. St. Paul owns Grand Casino Arena, a place the place individuals congregate for sports activities, concert events, and different actions. I recall reporting on the 2008 Republican National Convention when it was held in the St. Paul area. (That was the yr when U.S. Sen. John McCain was the presidential nominee and he threw a Hail Mary cross and selected Sarah Palin to be his working mate.)
Because the sector is sort of 26 years outdated, it’s uncertain that it might entice one other nationwide political conference in its present state. As know-how has developed, the infrastructure and techniques in a massive area must be upgraded. Leipold has made the case that the Wild’s renovation would prolong past aesthetics and deal with a few of these main infrastructure points.
When assessing who pays what for amenities that home skilled sports activities groups, it is smart to acknowledge the function of those venues as neighborhood property that profit a number of constituencies. Whether the areas are used for sports activities or festivals, additionally they are uncommon areas in which individuals put aside their partisan views, escape from on a regular basis life, and join with the individuals round them.
CHS Field is also owned by the town of St. Paul and Saints baseball administration is soliciting assist for an enchancment mission.
Tom Whaley, Saints’ govt vice chairman for enterprise affairs, mentioned the Saints wish to safe $8 million in bonding funds for an $18 million mission. In the approaching days, the Saints are anticipated to fulfill with metropolis leaders to debate monetary contributions from the town and baseball membership.
The Saints mission includes relocating customer participant amenities and putting in a massive Ferris wheel, which might be used throughout video games and as a downtown St. Paul attraction.
“The private/public partnership we established when the ballpark was developed in 2013-2014 has worked really well,” Whaley mentioned. “We would like to extend that so that we are able to maintain the ballpark in a first-class manner and sustain our relationship with Major League Baseball as the AAA home for the Minnesota Twins.”
In addition, Whaley mentioned, “we are all-in on doing our part to invest in the vibrancy of downtown.”
The Saints’ capability to draw baseball followers and efficiently host different actions was strengthened earlier this month. That’s when CHS Inc. prolonged its naming rights partnership with the St. Paul Saints.
In 2015, I recall speaking with then-CEO Carl Casale about why CHS selected to accomplice with a baseball franchise. Casale loved baseball, however he made the company dedication as a result of the Inver Grove Heights-based agribusiness wished to raise its profile in the Twin Cities. Casale wished to make use of CHS Field as a technique of attracting extra worker prospects to the cooperative.
In saying the naming rights extension, present CEO Jay Debertin famous that “our presence at CHS Field helps us build brand awareness and community engagement.” He additionally confused that CHS and the Saints “share a common belief in the power of collaboration to strengthen communities.”
You’ll see that at a Saints sport when followers snicker collectively concerning the on-field antics between innings, stand collectively for the “Star-Spangled Banner,” or pay tribute to a Minnesotan’s achievements.