To go hand-in-hand with Thursday's news that Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton has set a deadline for concrete stadium proposals is the news that Vikings owner Zygi Wilf is encouraged about recent developments. In an interview with the Star Tribune, Wilf noted that they (the team and the state) are "closer than ever on making it happen," and that he is "very encouraged to see the enthusiasm on the part of the governor and on the part of our state leaders in understanding that having a Vikings home for all the events is an important quality of life issue."
Others are getting confident that something good will happen very soon, though it will ultimately leave disappointment for one of Minneapolis and St. Paul.
Another key note to take from the interview is Wilf's desire to simply get a stadium deal approved, regardless of where it is. While the team has insisted that the site at Arden Hills is their No. 1 priority moving forward, the city of Minneapolis has been pushing three different potential sites. With the governor's recent deadline of Jan. 12 for stadium proposals, perhaps Wilf is softening on other sites. Either way, Wilf saying that he just wants a deal done, so long as it's in the Twin Cities area, is a definitely a good sign.
Wilf has good reason to at least be optimistic that things are on the right track, as "mid-January" was pegged as the point in which the team and state would be considered "behind" on getting a deal done if they hadn't yet picked a site to build, at the very least.
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