Well, Anoka County, there goes your last shot at developing that land with the Northern Lights project.

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.

It cannot be a good sign for the StarTribune's remaining employees when the parent company is cashing out the neighboring land and selling an option on the building they own. As I've noted before, the Anoka deal was sold to Zygi by Red McCombs because Zygi figured he was the better real estate developer. He now has a prime downtown property to develop what one person calls "another Wrigleyville." But he'll want state dollars to help him out. We'll see.

Labels: economics, sports