Eagan facility 70% Complete...

Team owner Zygi Wilf strolled into the lobby of his evolving headquarters in Eagan on Monday morning wearing a Vikings-horn construction hard hat and the future on his mind.
The Twin Cities Orthopedics Performance Center is 70 percent completed. The Vikings are scheduled to move there in less than six months. It will take until early 2018 for the club to reap contemporary NFL amenities.
“It’s a long time coming,” Wilf said. “We really enjoyed the years I’ve had, and the previous owners have, at Winter Park. But we feel it’s the right time to move on and to move into the 21st century and reward our players, fans and the community with a great facility.”
More than 300 construction workers are grinding, sawing and banging away at the structures that will cover 277,000 square feet across 40 acres near I-494 and I-35E, which was opened to the media Monday for a 90-minute tour and review.
Most of the exterior walls and roofs of the two main buildings are finished. So are the interior skeletons of the locker and weight rooms, auditorium, team museum and indoor field house — all of which were surrounded by scaffolding and dust, lots and lots of dust.
Cranes hoisted workers to the top of the home office that finally will house all 195 Vikings employees under one roof after being for decades in five buildings across the Twin Cities.
Bulldozers sculpted land in and around the 6,500-seat outdoor stadium and four grass practice fields that will allow the Vikings to host their training camp at home after more than 50 years at Minnesota State Mankato. Plans are for the amphitheater-style stadium to host Division II and III football games, select prep rivalries and some high school soccer matches.The Vikings’ second-story weight room fronts a glass atrium overlooking the stadium.

Wow...beautiful

say what you like about the Wilfs, but they've worked to bring this franchise some outstanding facilities. 

Pretty impressive place they’re building...

@"Vanguard83" said: Wow...beautiful

say what you like about the Wilfs, but they've worked to bring this franchise some outstanding facilities. 

Yup, this chapter of the Wilfs ownership I like a lot. 

Eden Prairie, home of Vikings for 36 years, gives team a final skol
The team opened its Eden Prairie facility off Hwys. 494 and 169 in 1981, back when much of the city was farmland and its population hovered around 16,000. Foreman said he had doubts about moving to what he thought a “country town.”

The 138,000-square-foot facility was named Winter Park after Max Winter, the team’s co-founder and president. It was a state-of-the-art complex at the time, Foreman remembered, with practice fields, offices and the purple ship.
Both the Vikings and Eden Prairie expanded during the 1980s and ’90s. The city continued to develop the business district surrounding Winter Park, an area it now calls the “golden triangle,” and the Vikings played their games at the Metrodome in downtown Minneapolis.
Players and coaches, including former running back Adrian Peterson and quarterback Brett Favre, bought homes in Eden Prairie to cut their work commute. Some sent their kids to Eden Prairie schools, including legendary head coach Bud Grant; his son Mike has won several state championships as head football coach for Eden Prairie High School since 1992.
But in recent years the team said it was in desperate need of space that the Eden Prairie site couldn’t provide. The massive Eagan facility, more than twice as large as Winter Park, will bring all employees of the franchise together under one roof.
At Monday’s lunch, Tyra-Lukens handed Wilf a plaque declaring the city’s appreciation for the team’s time there.
“We always strived to be good neighbors and good citizens, and the Eden Prairie community has been a most gracious host,” Wilf said.
http://www.startribune.com/eden-prairie-home-of-vikings-for-36-years-bids-team-farewell/452630793/

Gorgeous, state of the art facility. This last upgrade to the organization truly puts it in the upper tier of NFL franchises. About time. 

I'd argue that this is the more important piece for the players than the stadium. 

And I like the way it is being paid for much more as well. 

@"Mike Olson" said: I'd argue that this is the more important piece for the players than the stadium. 

I don't think anyone would argue with you.  The place where they spend all of their days practicing, working out, studying, etc. is much more important than the stadium to them I'm sure.  Yeah, players want a nice stadium to play in and be proud of, but they don't spend much more time there than the season ticket holding fans.  This new facility will be "home" to them during the season. 

Is 6,500 enough? Isn't Blaksee twice that size?

@"BarrNone55" said: Is 6,500 enough? Isn't Blaksee twice that size?

Blakeslee seats 7500. I wonder if there is room to add. Maybe they went conservative on the seating capacity. 

this is all shiny and pretty and shit,  but I dont see the fans being able to spend a day or two at these facilities like they do in Mankato.  I have a hard time envisioning training camp as it was.  From the players attitudes, to the vendors,  just everything.  Mankato was like a trip to the county fair,  Zigy World will be like a trip to Disneyland.

@"JimmyinSD" said: this is all shiny and pretty and shit,  but I dont see the fans being able to spend a day or two at these facilities like they do in Mankato.  I have a hard time envisioning training camp as it was.  From the players attitudes, to the vendors,  just everything.  Mankato was like a trip to the county fair,  Zigy World will be like a trip to Disneyland.

It's not going to be training camp like it was. It's going to be training camp on steroids. I am wondering about details such as parking and gathering places. It's going to be different no doubt. It will be less of a drive for me but I am curious how it will change. 

@"JimmyinSD" said: this is all shiny and pretty and shit,  but I dont see the fans being able to spend a day or two at these facilities like they do in Mankato.  I have a hard time envisioning training camp as it was.  From the players attitudes, to the vendors,  just everything.  Mankato was like a trip to the county fair,  Zigy World will be like a trip to Disneyland.

It's not going to be training camp like it was. It's going to be training camp on steroids. I am wondering about details such as parking and gathering places. It's going to be different no doubt. It will be less of a drive for me but I am curious how it will change. 

@"Vikergirl" said:

@"JimmyinSD" said: this is all shiny and pretty and shit,  but I dont see the fans being able to spend a day or two at these facilities like they do in Mankato.  I have a hard time envisioning training camp as it was.  From the players attitudes, to the vendors,  just everything.  Mankato was like a trip to the county fair,  Zigy World will be like a trip to Disneyland.

It's not going to be training camp like it was. It's going to be training camp on steroids. I am wondering about details such as parking and gathering places. It's going to be different no doubt. It will be less of a drive for me but I am curious how it will change. 

@"JimmyinSD" said:

@"Vikergirl" said:

@"JimmyinSD" said: this is all shiny and pretty and shit,  but I dont see the fans being able to spend a day or two at these facilities like they do in Mankato.  I have a hard time envisioning training camp as it was.  From the players attitudes, to the vendors,  just everything.  Mankato was like a trip to the county fair,  Zigy World will be like a trip to Disneyland.

It's not going to be training camp like it was. It's going to be training camp on steroids. I am wondering about details such as parking and gathering places. It's going to be different no doubt. It will be less of a drive for me but I am curious how it will change. 

like I said,  I am expecting disneyland.  I expect its going to be expensive and crowded.

@"Vikergirl" said:

@"JimmyinSD" said:

@"Vikergirl" said:

@"JimmyinSD" said: this is all shiny and pretty and shit,  but I dont see the fans being able to spend a day or two at these facilities like they do in Mankato.  I have a hard time envisioning training camp as it was.  From the players attitudes, to the vendors,  just everything.  Mankato was like a trip to the county fair,  Zigy World will be like a trip to Disneyland.

It's not going to be training camp like it was. It's going to be training camp on steroids. I am wondering about details such as parking and gathering places. It's going to be different no doubt. It will be less of a drive for me but I am curious how it will change. 

like I said,  I am expecting disneyland.  I expect its going to be expensive and crowded.

Especially at first when it's new. Have to get their early to get in. 

I dunno was there anything really going on there other than the crappy backside of the stadium "fan Zone"? 

I loved Mankato but I think it was sort of worn down. Of course Ziggy is going to squeeze every penny out of ya while on his premises but there's other stuff around there. 

Besides admit it... it was mostly oggling coeds. 

@"Mike Olson" said: I dunno was there anything really going on there other than the crappy backside of the stadium "fan Zone"? 

I loved Mankato but I think it was sort of worn down. Of course Ziggy is going to squeeze every penny out of ya while on his premises but there's other stuff around there. 

Besides admit it... it was mostly oggling coeds. 

the camp ground was usually great,  the meet up at local restaurants,  the city of Mankato made it feel like a destination with the banners and shit around.  i just dont expect that type of feel or experience.  I hate theme parks and since that is the type of atmosphere I am expecting... tinted tainted outlook.

Lebanon Hills campground isn't too far and there are others so that's something. It definitely won't be the small town campus thing that Mankato was but it isn't like we ever went down town as a big group. I do think that you're right about the theme park atmosphere though. But then again there is only so much Jakes stadium pizza I can take and let's face it...... the pizza options in and around the city will be much MUCH better. 

If a group of folks does come up we might have to arrange a brewery party bus one night. 

It's exciting. I am looking forward to seeing what's new.