Saint Paul seeks state share for $395 million Xcel Energy Center complex renovation

Mayor Melvin Carter of Saint Paul and Craig Leopold, owner of the Minnesota Wild and Minnesota Sports Entertainment Company, told the Senate Capital Investment Committee on March 25 that the Xcel Energy Center arena complex requires major renovations and an expanded vision to sustain economic activity in downtown Saint Paul.

“The Xcel Energy Center Arena Complex is a critical economic engine for our city and for our state,” Mayor Melvin Carter said, noting the complex attracts roughly 2.1 million visitors a year and generates around $383,000,000 in annual economic impact.

Leopold said the arena—opened in 1999—has outlived its original competitive lifespan and benefits from structural soundness, meaning a renovation rather than full replacement is feasible. The presenters described a total project request for $394,610,000 of appropriation-bond authority in the language the committee received; the mayor later summarized the breakdown to committee members as $284,600,000 for the Xcel Energy Center, $75,000,000 for Roy Wilkins Auditorium and $35,000,000 for the River Center.

Leopold said the Wild and its management have conducted market and feasibility studies and are pursuing a renovation that would modernize the arena interior, expand the complex’s role as an entertainment district, and support downtown economic activity. He said the Wild would contribute roughly 30% of the total project cost; the city and other local partners would provide about 20%; the state contribution would be about 50% under the proposal provided to the committee.

Testifiers included student-athlete Josie Schoogerman, who described the Xcel Energy Center as the “pinnacle of our sport” for high-school hockey, and Bea Kyle, president and CEO of the Saint Paul Area Chamber of Commerce, who emphasized the venue’s economic importance. Ryan Gilbertson of the Minnesota State Building and Construction Trades Council said the project would be governed by a project labor agreement and create union construction jobs; he described the full proposal as an $800,000,000 program in remarks to the committee when including ancillary development potential.

Senate fiscal staff presented an unofficial fiscal note on unintroduced language that assumed an appropriation-bond authorization of $394,610,000 and outlined debt-service costs to the state under a 20-year model: roughly $11,000,000 in FY2026 and $33,000,000 in each of FY2027–FY2029. Senator Umu Verbaten told the committee she plans to introduce language that contemplates a 30-year financing window and said the fiscal note will change accordingly.

Committee questions addressed project phasing, the Wild’s proposed 30% contribution and timing of cash flows. Craig Leopold said the team is flexible on timing and that spending would likely occur over a four- to five-year construction period, with the Wild willing to adjust when its funds are applied depending on legislative timing.

Mayor Carter and others said the city and county are working to finalize the local matching structure and that the city would use development tools and local sources to fill that local share. No committee vote occurred; the presentation was informational and the bill language was unintroduced at the time of the hearing.