Yvette Shields

CHICAGO — With the clock ticking on the Minnesota Legislature’s spring session, representatives from the Minnesota Vikings and Ramsey County met with key lawmakers Wednesday to promote their proposal to build a publicly subsidized $1 billion stadium in the Twin Cities suburb of Arden Hills.

CHICAGO — Struggling to meet traffic projections for its privately owned airport in Missouri’s Ozark Mountains, Branson Airport LLC has won some breathing room from holders of $113 million of airport bonds under a forbearance agreement that staves off any enforcement actions.

CHICAGO — Wisconsin will enter the market as soon as Wednesday with up to $276 million of general obligation refunding bonds to complete a debt restructuring originally held up by the controversy earlier this year over Gov. Scott Walker’s move to curtail the collective bargaining rights of most public unions.

Missouri Department of Transportation director Kevin Keith last week announced a plan to dramatically cut the agency in a bid to redirect funds to road and bridge projects.

Illinois won an additional $454 million in federal high-speed rail funding.

The Chicago City Council last week approved the sale of up $80 million of general obligation tender notes to fund operations for the Chicago Public Library system in anticipation of annual tax collections.

The Springfield Chamber of Commerce last week floated a plan to issue $6.1 billion of four-year bonds to pay down Illinois’ backlog of bills.

CHICAGO — Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak and Council President Barbara Johnson unveiled a proposal Monday to partially fund a new $895 million Minnesota Vikings football stadium and renovations to the Timberwolves basketball arena by raising the city’s sales tax and expanding other taxes.

CHICAGO — Illinois lawmakers should reject much of Gov. Pat Quinn’s proposed $52.7 billion fiscal 2012 budget because it leaves a $2.4 billion operating shortfall and relies too heavily on an expensive borrowing scheme to pay off billions of dollars in overdue bills, a local tax policy group recommended Monday.

CHICAGO — When he takes office next week, Chicago Mayor-elect Rahm Emanuel will face an estimated $587 million deficit in the 2012 budget — down about 10% from the shortfall going into the 2011, the city’s finance team said Friday.

CHICAGO — The Lombard Public Facilities Corp. in Illinois is exploring its options to buy more time for business to pick up at its bond-financed hotel and conference center after too few investors were willing to tender their bonds at the agency’s asking price.

CHICAGO — The Xenia Rural Water District’s financial position worsened in 2010, moving it closer to insolvency and increasing the pressure on the Iowa agency and its creditors to come to some agreement that likely includes debt forgiveness, according to a state audit.

CHICAGO — Strong investor relationships and diligent disclosure provide issuers with their best shot at keeping borrowing costs down amid headlines about fiscal stress that persist even as state tax revenues have rebounded, a conference panelist said here Tuesday.

CHICAGO — The University of Chicago Medical Center will enter the market with $182 million of debt beginning next week to wrap up its planned borrowing for a new hospital pavilion that will house its complex-care services.

The federal government last week officially agreed to cover half the nearly $1 billion cost for the 11-mile Central Corridor light-rail line that will connect the downtowns of Minneapolis and St. Paul.

Standard & Poor’s last week said Illinois’ decision not to renew some of its managed-care contracts with Carle Foundation subsidiary Health Alliance Medical Plans won’t affect the Urbana-based system’s A-plus rating, although the loss of business could pose a credit risk down the road.

Former Gov. James Thompson will temporarily lead the Illinois Sports Facilities Authority following the departure of executive director Perri Irmer, who has managed the agency since 2004.

CHICAGO — The nation’s largest nonprofit health care provider, Ascension Health, will acquire Alexian Brothers Health System, a union that marks the latest in a consolidation trend as hospital systems seek to bolster their capital positions and navigate the challenges of federal health care reform.

CHICAGO — Illinois could end the fiscal year owing more than $8 billion in bills, a level that underscores the need to cut spending in order to stabilize its balance sheet, Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka warned Wednesday.

CHICAGO — Warning of the threat posed to its long-term fiscal stability, the Regional Transportation Authority of Illinois is leading a charge against state legislation that would aid retailers and other businesses seeking to avoid paying some local sales taxes by setting up shell offices elsewhere.