Both new stadia have spurred increased ticket sales:

The Gophers reported selling 102 football season tickets for next season on Monday as fans began to position themselves for seats in the on-campus stadium set to open in 2009. Athletic director Joel Maturi called it the first sign that things are going to be different when it comes to attending a Gophers football game.

"The reality is we're going from a 64,000 seat stadium to a 50,000 seat stadium," Maturi said. "There is some excitement being generated. So it could come to the point that come 2009, and you're not a season-ticket holder, you might not be getting in."

...The Twins reported significant activity in their ticket office, as well. Ticket manager Scott O'Connell said approximately 20 season tickets for the remainder of this season were sold before noon, with more expected before the end of the business day.

"People are trying to establish a priority at the new ballpark," O'Connell said. "We'll have some kind of program down the road that will be a deposit situation, where people can establish a pecking order for the new ballpark. People who already have season tickets or are buying them now will walk into a priority situation."

By the way, did you hear about this little bit of pork tossed into the Gopher bill?

A provision in the University of Minnesota's stadium bill that passed in the waning hours of the Legislative session commits about $80,000 in taconite taxes annually to keep the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame in Eveleth, Minn.

Citing sagging attendance, hall officials earlier this month said they wanted to close the museum's doors and look for a new home. St. Paul officials, including City Council Member Dan Bostrom, suggested the capital city would welcome a new Hall of Fame, particularly on the East Side.

I reported the HHOF closing at The Sports Economist earlier this month. Rep. Tom Rukavina (DFL-Virginia) got the bribe annual contribution into the bill. He's hoping to get matching funds from private donors.