Ice-time in the metro is very scarce. Kids are having to practice at 4 and 5 in the morning. The NBA Timberwolves threaten to move to New Orleans if local government doesn't hand over some serious dough. Leaders of Minneapolis' one-party political machine travel to New York and get their marching orders from NBA head David Stern. A deal is put together to bail out the Timberwolves' owners who have overextended themselves, even though the original deal stipulated that no bailout would ever be permitted.
Popular opposition is intense.
She had previously been fired for peddling bonds to her husband and father while finance director. Similar conflicts of interest riddle Minneapolis politics and extend to the Mayor's office. The Mayor's husband works for a law firm which frequently lands bond counsel contracts for this kind of insider project. Minneapolis Star Tribune continues to hail the new pro sports facilities as an economic and cultural godsend, citing the many big national events hosted recently therein. Clearly the Metrodome, for example, was a wise investment.