Opinion ID: 1649985
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 12

Heading: To what extent does the Commission have discretion to negotiate a lease with the Minnesota Twins for the use of the stadium, which lease permits the Twins to terminate the lease under the financial capability clause of the statute? (473.581, Subd. 3(a))

Text: The statute states: The agreements may contain provisions negotiated between the organizations and the commission which provide for termination upon conditions related and limited to the bankruptcy, insolvency, or financial capability of the organization. (Emphasis supplied). The Commission's lease with the Minnesota Twins provides for termination of the lease in the event of their inability to sell an average of the lesser of (a) 1,400,000 tickets annually or (b) an average of the number of tickets sold by all of the teams in the American League during a baseball season for three consecutive seasons or (2) for three consecutive fiscal years the Twins have a net operating loss. Further, the lease provides in Section 3.2 that if the lack of air conditioning substantially adversely affects attendance at home games and thus the team's revenues, the team may give the Commission notice of such effect. If the Commission does not install air conditioning before the commencement of the baseball season next following such notice, subject to the availability of the equipment, the team may terminate this agreement. Quite obviously the legislature intended that the Commission should have some discretion in permitting the termination of the thirty year lease if the Commission determined that the team did not have the financial capability to carry out the terms of the lease. The Commission has determined that the lease may be terminated if for three years the attendance is insufficient or for three consecutive years the Twins have a net operating loss, or it may be terminated if the Commission refuses to install air conditioning and it is shown that attendance has been adversely affected thereby. Certainly the Commission must have considered that there are many factors affecting the ability of the Twins to sell tickets, but this court is not prepared to say that a minimum sale of 1,400,000 tickets or the average number of tickets sold by all of the teams in the American League during a baseball season for three consecutive seasons is arbitrary or capricious. The decision to not install air conditioning equipment was based upon expert advice given to the Commission. It may be that the Commission will be required to install the equipment in which event apparently the present design of the stadium contemplates. It would seem that if the Twins continually lose money in their operation, their financial capability to continue to operate under the terms of the lease will be affected. While the legislature did not define the meaning of the words financial capability, the court cannot say that the Commission's interpretation is arbitrary.