Eagan Official: Vikings HQ Will Be 'National' Destination

Eagan, Minnesota – It’s official. After 35 years at Winter Park in Eden Prairie, the Minnesota Vikings will build their future headquarters and training facility on 44 acres of the former Northwest Airlines headquarters in Eagan.

The 200-acre total redevelopment will include office and retail space, a hotel, residential housing and public green space, thanks to a unanimous vote by the Eagan City Council to change the area’s land-use designation to mixed use, according to a news release.

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"This is a unique opportunity for Eagan and the Minnesota Vikings," says Jill Hutmacher, the city’s new community development director. "This dynamic development will be a regional, even a national, destination not only for Vikings events but for ‘Friday Night Lights’ high school football and other events."

The Minnesota Vikings envision a surrounding "work-live-play" development that will likely give Eagan a new vibe, she adds. "It will be fun to see how the neighborhood will change that part of the city—perhaps drawing a younger demographic who want to be where the action is."

All parties are working together to ensure that key wetlands and woodlands are preserved, and that new trails provide access to open space and extend into surrounding areas.

"The open, natural spaces and trails will be important to a lot of people, including millennials and younger families, who want to be active, and walk to destinations and activities in their community," says Hutmacher.

The team plans to move in March 2018, one month after U.S. Bank Stadium hosts the Super Bowl.

The new Minnesota Vikings facilities will include:

• Five outdoor fields
• A 6,000 seat outdoor stadium (expandable to 10,000 seats)
• Outdoor training areas
• An indoor practice facility
• Team auditorium and meeting rooms
• Media center/press facilities
• Locker room, weight room and equipment facilities
• Cardiovascular and specialized speed rooms
• Hydrotherapy room and recovery rooms
• Offices for front office staff

Image via Shutterstock

Site concept courtesy of City of Eagan