St. Paul to Hire Lobbying Firm Tied to Soccer Stadium Plan

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) - St. Paul's mayor has received city council permission to hire a lobbying firm to seek law changes toward a new Minnesota United soccer stadium.

The city council approved a resolution Wednesday giving Mayor Chris Coleman the go-ahead to hire the Messerli and Kramer firm. A contract hasn't been signed yet. That firm had represented the soccer franchise until last week and was instrumental in winning passage of a Twins ballpark proposal years ago.

St. Paul is partnering with the team to build a stadium on a mostly empty parcel along Interstate 94. It's part of a deal to get Major League Soccer to grant Minnesota a franchise.

While the stadium construction itself will be privately financed, franchise owners are counting on future tax breaks that would require approval of the Legislature.