Skol, Eagan! Vikings land in new practice center

The Minnesota Vikings opened the doors of their gleaming new suburban home Friday with an extensive tour of the Twin Cities Orthopedics Performance Center in Eagan.

The team moved this week into an expansive space with its own stadium and an airy building with multistory spaces. Its a sharp shift from the squat office spaces at Winter Park in Eden Prairie, the Vikings HQ since 1981.

At TCO Performance Center, the multilevel entryway sets the Nordic tone with a palette of white with purple accents and wood, metal and stone finishes with lots of natural light from on high.

The cafeteria, called the huddle, overlooks acres of land that once was the headquarters of Northwest Airlines. Minnesota Vikings owners, the Wilf family, plan to develop the rest of the land for office space, a hotel, retail and housing.

The cafeteria overlooks a 6,500-seat stadium on the south side of the building.

Team Vice President Lester Bagley said the plan is to use the stadium not just for the Vikings and summer training camp but for high school football, soccer and lacrosse as well as concerts.

The more uses the better, Bagley said.

The goals for 2018 include hosting two-four high school teams for scrimmages, Friday Night Lights rivalry football game and a quarterfinal playoff game.

The multistory white building with the Norseman logos outside is highly visible from Highway 494. The stadium is tucked behind the building, parallel to the highway.

Team executives say the project was built with no public subsidy. The cost of the new facility isnt public, because the Wilfs paid for it.

Future amenities include a Vikings Hall of Fame that is open to the public and a store.

Vikings general manager Rick Spielman showed off his new draft room, with a digital board that allows him to move the names of players around just by touch. He used to use magnets on a wall in a tiny conference room.

His new draft room also has stadium seating and 40 55 TVs that allow coaches to watch films and see the player board with rankings.

Spielman said the room will be used every day to track personnel moves.

I just hope I dont push the wrong damn button, Spielman said. The sides of the room remain magnetized walls Spielmans backup plan.

He said he believes the facility is the first of its kind in the NFL that will provide a huge competitive advantage.

New Jersey real estate scions and brothers Zygi and Mark Wilf purchased the Vikings in 2005 along with their cousin Leonard Wilf.

Rochelle Olson 612-673-1747 Twitter: @rochelleolson