The Taxpayers League of Minnesota is suing to stop construction of the new St. Paul Saints stadium in Lowertown. In its suit filed Friday in Ramsey County District Court, the taxpayer league claims the city of St. Paul violated competitive bidding laws when it awarded the design-build contract for the new stadium to Ryan Cos.

The St. Paul Saints believe a new land deal involving the city's Port Authority gets them closer to a new ballpark by the river downtown. The authority has signed a $1.85 million purchase-and-sale agreement for an empty Lowertown warehouse, which it plans to trade for the city's 30-year-old Midway Stadium off Energy Park Drive in an industrial part of the city. The authority wants to rip down Midway and turn the property over to industrial use.

St. Paul is one step closer to seeing a new Saints ballpark in Lowertown. The city council voted unanimously on Wednesday to approve a financing plan for a $54 million ballpark in downtown St. Paul near the Farmers' Market – an upgrade from aging Midway Stadium. According to the plan, the city will put $17 million toward the project, and the Saints would pay $10 million. The city applied to the state for the other half of the cost.

After city leaders huddled for several hours late Tuesday, St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman announced Wednesday that the design-build contract for the $54 million Lowertown ballpark will be reopened for bids. The contract was originally awarded to Minneapolis-based Ryan Companies the day after the St. Paul Saints received $25 million in a state economic development grant.