Vikings team bows to neighbors, to turn off lights at night
The Minnesota Vikings are turning off the lights at the team's new practice facility south of Minneapolis after neighbors complained about the glow.
The Eagan building's north side is nearly 100 feet high and lights up with the team's Norseman logo and the words "Twin Cities Orthopedics Performance Center — Home of the Minnesota Vikings."
The NFL team will turn off the lights on the north side of the building between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m., said Jeff Anderson, team spokesperson. The shut-off time will be moved to about midnight when the team hosts night events such as high school games.
The team is "listening to the community," Anderson said.
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The other three sides of the facility will remain lit every night, he said.
The Vikings moved into the 277,000-square-foot complex in March. The area includes an indoor practice facility, the team's headquarters and an outdoor stadium.
Mendota Heights residents complained about the lights last month.
City officials found the building complied with city code when it received an initial complaint about the lights in February, said Tom Garrison, Eagan spokesperson.
"Brightness levels are the same as other wall signage in Eagan," Garrison said.
The new solution was an "internal team decision," said Lester Bagley, the Vikings' executive vice president of public affairs.
"We'd like to be collaborative and compromise," Bagley said.
Resident Nancy Commerford said the decision will help make her street feel less like a circus.
"If I wake up in the middle of the night now I won't see the lights," Commerford said. "Having them compromise like this makes my day."
The team expects the change to occur this weekend.