Stadium Watch Blog

Saints fans are getting an unpleasant surprise

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The Star Tribune's Kevin Duchschere says St. Paul Saints fans are getting a little sticker shock these days as the team rolls out its season ticket prices for the new Lowertown Ballpark set to open in 2015.

Some of the seat prices in the new stadium will more than double, Duchschere says:

Upper-level seats behind home plate will cost 39 percent more, and tickets in the remaining infield section will cost 24 percent more. Season tickets for outfield seating will see a 9 percent hike.

That cuts against the team's much-touted affordability and promises to keep prices down, although an unexpected overrun in the cost of the new stadium has also forced the team to put up more money for the project and agree to a revenue sharing deal with the city, which will own the park and is subsidizing the $63 million project.

The price spike parallels a big hike for Vikings fans: most season ticket holders there will see price hikes for their per-game tickets. But they'll also have to pony up, in most cases, for personal seat licenses that cost as much as $9,500. Four out of five seats in the new Vikings stadium will require the up-front payments, which will average $2,500.