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Babacas:You need me badly. You have the worst stadium in America. You have to walk 60 steps for a hot dog, which is stupid. You ought to have a level where you can just walk in and get some food.Babacas' solution: a new stadium in Lino Lakes with natural grass and a retractable-dome roof. He calls it the Stardome.
Babacus: The project will take 24 months to build. The height of the dome will be 24 stories. The sports complex will soon be known as the sports capital of the world.Perhaps the best part, according to Babacas, is all of it would be built at no expense to taxpayers.
Babacus: The taxpayers are sick and tired of paying for private enterprise.Babacas says he has purchased a 363-acre plot of farmland in Lino Lakes for his stadium complex. He says he has raised $600 million to build the facility and to buy the Minnesota Twins. But he became angry when reporters sought specifics about his finances.
Babacus: It's none of your business.Babacas did say there would be free parking for 25,000 cars; that advertising on light poles would cover that cost. He also said hot dogs would cost no more than $2.
Babacus: And I'm giving a lot of credit to your great governor who thinks like I do. He loved me dearly. In fact I've got a letter here in which he gives me his endorsement.Actually, according to the governor's office, Babacas does not have Ventura's Endorsement. It was more of a gubernatorial blessing - a wish of good luck, according to spokesman John Woedele.
Ellis:I don't know if he's uninformed or just optimistic.Ellis says Lino Lakes first heard from Babacas just a few days ago. She says the city's official position is that it's too early to pass judgment.
Ellis: Do we take it seriously? It's too early to even say whether we take it seriously or not. We certainly find it somewhat interesting.Lino Lakes Economic Development Official Mary Ellis.