St. Michael to Get Pro Soccer Dome

The St. Michael City Council unanimously approved a motion Tuesday night that will bring a professional-level indoor soccer facility to the city by the end of 2011.

After discussion with Community Development Director Marc Weigle, the council voted unanimously to lease the future site of the project to the Minnesota Kings Football Club of the National Premier Soccer League.

The project is being planned for a site next to the St. Michael water treatment plant. The dome would replace a soccer field currently used for summer recreational leagues.  

The Kings will bear the entire financial burden of the dome including land improvement, construction, gas, electric and the creation of a new parking lot. St. Michael will be responsible for plowing the parking lot during the winter.

“Because of our affiliation with the youth soccer program STMA United and the relationship we have with the city council, building the dome (in St. Michael) was a no-brainer once we had purchased it,” club director Tim Haselberger said.

Both STMA United and the City of St. Michael will enjoy a level of exclusivity with regard to using the dome.

“The City can schedule fields to use as early as STMA United and pay the same (undisclosed) fee,” Weigle said. “When the dome is deflated in the summer, the youth recreational soccer league will be able to use the facility for two nights a week between 5 p.m. and 9 p.m at no cost.”

Weigle also explained that the City of St. Michael will enjoy the right to use the facility for 50 hours per year, before 3 p.m., at no cost. “The number is arbitrary but those hours would be for events and school-related functions,” he said.

One of the biggest advantages to having the facility in St. Michael is the expansion of the annual Kings F.C. Soccer Academy. A community-based initiative organized by the Kings, the soccer academy offers professional-level instruction and coaching for players under five years old all the way up to those under 13.

“We’re running the clinics right now but we’re really confined by space,” Haselberger explained. “This dome will allow us to triple the size of the academy by this time next year.”

Haselbeger also explained that Minnesota-based soccer teams, whether they are located in St. Michael, Albertville, Monticello, Otsego or anywhere else, need to be able to train year-round to be competitive on the national level.

Haselberger was also quick to note that the project would be impossible without the support of the City. “We’re providing something that would not be possible without the support of the City of St. Michael. This is our chance to give back to them and to (STMA United).”  

The City Council approved the motion on Tuesday night with a timeline condition. The building contractor must be able to present completed engineering documents by May this year. Land improvements must be finished by July, with construction beginning no later than September.

“We had to wait until after the 2011 (recreational soccer) season,” St. Michael Mayor Jerry Zachman explained. “If we didn’t, where would the kids play this summer?”