Does it make sense to sell the Metrodome to the Vikings for a dollar? According to the Star Tribune, that’s what state Sens. John Marty and Linda Runbeck will propose today. The unlikely pairing of the liberal Marty and conservative Runbeck is eye-catching all by itself. It’s like sending out former Presidents George W. Bush and Bill Clinton to collect money for Haiti.
The sold-for-a-dollar strategy is often used for distressed properties. Newsweek was sold for a dollar. TV Guide was sold for a dollar. There was a haunted lighthouse in Connecticut and an abandoned hospital in Ohio that sold for a dollar. Here in Minnesota, the Shubert Theater was sold to Artspace for a dollar, and now it’s been reborn as the Cowles Center for Dance & the Performing Arts.
But put yourself in Zygi Wilf’s shoes. When you’re dreaming of a spanking new palace, would you settle for something from the Dollar Store?