ST. PAUL, Minn. - At a news conference Wednesday afternoon, Governor Mark Dayton seemed to say two different things when it came to the Vikings Stadium.
"Regrettably, there is not yet a stadium proposal with a complete and sufficient financial plan," said Dayton.
But then minutes later, he sounded very optimistic that something would get done.
"I think we're very close. We're on the five yard line," he said.
Some wonder for which end zone. Dayton has problems with all three main proposals.
He believes Arden Hills in Ramsey County, which is the Vikings first choice, is unworkable.
That's because the legislature is unwilling to allow the county to raise taxes to help pay for it without putting it to a referendum.
Then there's the favorite among Minneapolis officials, building on the Metrodome site which Dayton says is not the best option, but has the least obstacles.
One big obstacle is the fact the Vikings would have to play at TCF Bank Stadium for three years, meaning the Vikings would lose money.
And finally Linden Avenue near the Basilica of St Mary's.
"The traffic, the congestion and the noise of 60,000 people attending a game while were conducting mass for thousands of people, those are serious and significant concerns," said Father John Bauer, the pastor at the Basilica of St. Mary's.
Bauer says the concerns are 'not manageable'.
Yet when pressed, Dayton seemed to favor the Linden Avenue site more than others, believing the concerns are manageable.
Either way, the Vikings remain confident.
"We feel good where this process is," said Lester Bagley, Vikings spokesperson. "We believe we can get this resolved this legislative session."
But the clock is ticking. Legislators met behind closed doors at Dixie's on Grand Avenue in St. Paul Wednesday night discussing all the proposals.
With the Metrodome lease up, they hope to have a stadium bill on paper ready for a vote during the legislative session, which starts next week.
"I wish we could come out here and say this is a done deal and get it out of the front page, out of the headline news, but we still have a ways to go," said State Representative Morrie Lanning, a Republican from Moorhead.
Lanning and his fellow Republican leadership don't believe they'll have a bill ready to go before the legislative session begins.
Although it's not definitie, Republicans said Wednesday night, gaming could be a part of funding for a stadium.
Officials with Ramsey County, who was once thought as a front runner for a Vikings stadium, are frustrated.
"What's frustrating is there doesn't seem to be a process where people say here are the criteria by which we get from point A to B," said Rafael Ortega, a Ramsey County Commissioner who presented a plan to legislators Wednesday night.
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