>> Eric: THERE'S A NEW DEAL IN TOWN.

IT'S BETWEEN THE CITY OF ST.

PAUL AND THE MINNESOTA WILD.

THIS WEEK, THE TWO ANNOUNCED A $600 MILLION PLAN TO RENOVATE GRAND CASINO ARENA, FORMERLY KNOWN AS THE XCEL ENERGY CENTER, THE RIVERCENTRE, AND ROY WILKINS AUDITORIUM.

THEY'LL ASK THE LEGISLATURE TO FUND A THIRD OF THE PROJECT.

SAINT PAUL'S ASSISTANT MAYOR FOR HOUSING, ECONOMIC VIBRANCY AND INFRASTRUCTURE NICK STUMO-LANGER JOINS US WITH DETAILS.

HOW DID YOU PUT THIS TOGETHER?

SHE'S BEEN MAYOR TWO MONTHS?

>> YEAH, I'M IN THE END OF MY EIGHTH WEEK HERE AND THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME HERE.

SO THIS STARTED DURING HE TRANSITION.

SO LATE NOVEMBER, EARLY DECEMBER WE STARTED MEETING WITH THE TEAM AND JUST STARTED PATCHING WITH A FRAMEWORK OF A DEAL, GETTING US IN A ROOM.

I THINK THE MAYOR DID A REALLY GOOD JOB OF A CLASSIC LEGISLATIVE TRICK WHEN SHE LEARNED AT THE LEGISLATURE, GET EVERYONE IN THE ROOM TELL THEM YOU HAVE TO KEEP GOING BACK UNTIL YOU GET A DEAL AND IN TRUE LEGISLATIVE FASHION WEPT A LITTLE BIT OVER THE DEADLINE BUT GOT IT DONE.

>> Cathy: MOST PEOPLE, NICK, WOULD SAY, LOOK, IT SEEMS LIKE THE ARENA IS FINE, YOU KNOW, DOESN'T LOOK BAD.

BUT WHAT'S THE PROBLEM?

>> YEAH, THE WILD HAS DONE A REALLY GOOD JOB ALONGSIDE THE CITY F KEEPING IT UP FOR KIND OF THOSE AESTHETIC COMPONENTS BUT REALLY HAT THIS DEAL HAS IS A LOT OF THE GUTS OF THE ARENA.

HVAC SYSTEMS, KITCHEN COMPONENTS, LOOKING AT NHL STANDARDS TOO WHICH IS VERY IMPORTANT FOR THE TEAM AND COMPETITIVENESS THAT THEY HAVE AND THEN ALSO MAKING SURE THAT GATE 2 OUT ON WEST SEVENTH IS ACTIVATABLE, SAFE FOR FOLKS.

THERE'S A LOT OF PARTS OF THIS DEAL THAT YOU WOULDN'T NECESSARILY SEE.

>> Eric: THERE IS A $3.7 BILLION SHORT-TERM SURPLUS.

YOU'RE LOOKING FOR 200 MILLION FROM THE LEGISLATURE.

WHAT ARE THE CHANCES?

WHAT ARE YOU THINKIN'?

>> SO A LOT OF THE FOLKS ON OUR TEAM, MYSELF INCLUDED WE HAVE A LOT OF GOOD RELATIONSHIPS AT THE LEGISLATURE, AND THE WAY THAT HE MAYOR HAS APPROACHED THIS HAS BEEN TALKING TO FOLKS, CONSISTENTLY EVEN WHILE WE WERE IN NEGOTIATIONS LETTING THEM KNOW WHAT WE WERE THINKING, HEARING FROM THEM ADJUSTING THE TERMS OF THE DEAL BASED ON THOSE INPUTS.

BUT WE KNOW THAT IT'S CHALLENGING RIGHT NOW AT THE LEGISLATURE, THERE'S A LOT OF BIG PROBLEMS TO SOLVE, WE'RE ALSO UP THERE ASKING FOR SUPPORT BECAUSE OF THE IMPACTS OF OPERATION METRO SURGE ON OUR RESIDENTS.

AND BUT YOU WOULDN'T BE INVOLVED IN POLITICS IF YOU DIDN'T HAVE SOME OPTIMISM.

>> Cathy: I'M WONDERING, ERIC AND I WERE TALKING OFF AIR, WE WERE TRYING TO REMEMBER SENATOR PAPPAS WAS COOL TO THE RENOVATION IDEA LAST SESSION.

AND, YOU KNOW, SHE'S A BIG PLAYER.

ARE WE TO ASSUME EVERYONE'S BEHIND THIS IDEA?

, NECKER THE DELEGATION.

>> YEAH, WE HAD GREAT CONVERSATIONS BEFORE THE ANNOUNCEMENT WITH EVERY EMBER OF DELEGATION, EVERY COUNCIL MEMBER, CIVIC LEADERS, THAT KIND OF ENGAGEMENT AHEAD OF TIME EVEN IF THEY HAVE OTHER PRIORITIES, IT JUST MATTERS A TON.

POLITICS IS A RELATIONAL BUSINESS.

IT'S SOMETHING THAT WE TRY TO MODEL AND DO WELL.

>> Eric: NOW, ONE OF THE STICKER SHOCK THINGS WAS THE HALF-CENT SALES TAX IN ST.

PAUL GETS EXTENDED TO 2061.

THAT'S A LONG TIME.

>> YEAH, SO THE TERMS ARE, WE HAVE TO SEE WHAT COMES OUT AT THE LEGISLATURE, BUT WE KNOW THAT THE CURRENT SALES TAX EXISTS AND EXISTS FOR THIS PURPOSE, AN EXTENSION OF A SALES TAX IS ACTUALLY A REALLY MAYBE MORE PALATABLE WAY OF GOING TO THE LEGISLATURE RATHER THAN ESTABLISHING A NEW ONE.

IT'S DONE ITS JOB PUTTING INVESTMENT INTO THE ARENA COMPLEX.

>> Eric: HOW IMPORTANT IS THIS DEAL TO ST.

PAUL?

>> I THINK IT'S HUGE.

I WILL SAY TOO THERE ARE A LOT OF PUBLICLY OWNED SPACES IN DOWNTOWN ST.

AUL IN PECULIAR, CHS FIELD, PUBLICLY OWNED ASSET, THE SCIENCE MUSEUM, THIS ARENA COMPLEX, PUBLICLY OWNED ASSET.

WHEN WE INVEST IN SSETS WE CAN DRIVE ECONOMIC VIBRANCY DOWNTOWN AND ACROSS THE REGION.

>> WHAT'S THE TEAM IN FOR UNDER THIS DEAL >> YEAH, UNDER THIS DEAL ESSENTIALLY A THIRD, A THIRD , A THIRD, THE TEAM IS IN FOR $162 MILLION UP FRONT AND A PARTNER ON ROY WILKINS.

>> Cathy: WHICH NEEDS TO BE DONE BECAUSE ROY WILKINS IS WHAT 90 YEARS OLD OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT >> IT'S A CLASSIC CULTURAL BEACON, WE WANT TO MAKE SURE IT SAYS THAT WAY.

THE FIRST PART IS STABILIZING STRUCTURE SO THAT FURTHER INVESTMENT CAN APPEN AND THE BASEMENT REALLY GETTING TO CONNECT TO RIVERCENTRE, THAT PUTS US IN DIFFERENT STRATOSPHERE FOR CONFERENCES.

>> Eric: DO YOU HAVE HEARINGS SCHEDULED?

HAVE YOU BEEN GRANTED HEARINGS?

>> I'M NOT THE INTERGOVERNMENTAL RELATIONS DOOR.

[ LAUGHTER ] -- BUT I'M REALLY