T Denny Sanford

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BilldGopher

BilldGopher

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Just reading an article in the Strib about Sanford Health and Fairview trying to merge that of course must address billionaire T Denny Sanford's role as founder of Sanford Health.

The article notes:

"A decade earlier, he was known in the Twin Cities as a force in the U's effort to build a new football stadium. One attempt in early 2003 sputtered. In 2009, he donated millions of dollars to help build the stadium."

I always thought he spurned the fundraising efforts for The Bank. I guess I'm wrong must stand corrected? Anyone else recall?
 

You're not alone in being confused about what's up with Denny.

To me he kinda showed up on the scene and it was all opaque what happened.

I've heard and read lots of stories that often conflict. I feel like there are a lot of urban legends surrounding him and it's not clear to me what the truth is.

I don't think anyone has looked into any of the stories closely. Most of it is so generally stated that yeah it could be both true ... and false (missing the actual context).
 

Hmm. I only remember the $35M lead gift attempt that the U asked for more on when the stadium cost doubled and he said forget it.

Confirmed in this 2007 Forbes article on him: https://www.forbes.com/forbes/2007/1008/232.html?sh=2f13a88a2d42

In 2002 Sanford had a clarifying experience. He pledged $35 million toward a $125 million football stadium for the University of Minnesota's Golden Gophers. (His "kids first" philosophy hadn't fully crystallized.) The gift turned out to be a bust after the university more than doubled the cost of the stadium and refused to give him naming rights unless he coughed up more. Sanford, fuming, withdrew the gift. His conclusion: avoid big bureaucratic institutions when it comes to charity.
 

BilldGopher said:
The article notes:

"A decade earlier, he was known in the Twin Cities as a force in the U's effort to build a new football stadium. One attempt in early 2003 sputtered. In 2009, he donated millions of dollars to help build the stadium."

I always thought he spurned the fundraising efforts for The Bank. I guess I'm wrong must stand corrected? Anyone else recall?
Click to expand...

ChatGPT or human, round 1
 

Gophers_4life said:
Hmm. I only remember the $35M lead gift attempt that the U asked for more on when the stadium cost doubled and he said forget it.

Confirmed in this 2007 Forbes article on him: https://www.forbes.com/forbes/2007/1008/232.html?sh=2f13a88a2d42

In 2002 Sanford had a clarifying experience. He pledged $35 million toward a $125 million football stadium for the University of Minnesota's Golden Gophers. (His "kids first" philosophy hadn't fully crystallized.) The gift turned out to be a bust after the university more than doubled the cost of the stadium and refused to give him naming rights unless he coughed up more. Sanford, fuming, withdrew the gift. His conclusion: avoid big bureaucratic institutions when it comes to charity.
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This appears to cover it...
1676386079541.png
 








Ski U Mah Gopher said:
The Hall of Fame in Huntington Bank Stadium is named for him.

T. Denny Sanford Athletics Hall of Fame
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There you go, this is the answer. Thanks!

In 2009, a gift from the T. Denny Sanford family took fund-raising for Minnesota's new stadium over its goal. Said Director of Athletics Joel Maturi in announcing the gift, "(T. Denny) and I have long shared a vision to bring Gopher football back to campus and I am thrilled that he is going to be part of this outstanding facility." Sanford, in fact, initiated football's return to campus.

Said Sanford, "I take great pride topping off the fundraising for a University that has helped me so much."
 

Interesting U bits from the Forbes article, for those who didn't know (myself included):

Sanford was born in St. Paul, Minn. His father ran a wholesale garment business. When he was 4, he lost his mother. At 8 he started working every afternoon and weekend, stocking his father's shelves. The summer after graduating from high school he was arrested during a drunken brawl. That earned him a 90-day sentence in juvenile detention. A judge let him out on day 36, after he agreed to enroll at the University of Minnesota.

At age 20 Sanford lost his father, as well. Graduation in 1958 led to a sales job with Armstrong Cork. After a year he started his own firm, Contech, representing manufacturers of construction materials. Contech went public in 1972. Ten years later, with 350 employees and $35 million in sales, Milwaukee conglomerate Rexnord bought it for $28 million. Sanford's take was $20 million.

Then 45, with two kids in college, Sanford tried to relax. He moved with his wife to Clearwater, Fla. He lowered his golf handicap to five and contemplated qualifying for the Senior pga tour. "That turned out to be a joke," Sanford says, though he sometimes plays in up to four golf tournaments a week.

Soon divorced and back in Minnesota, Sanford dabbled in venture capital. In 1986 he helped out a friend who was going through a divorce and needed to unload a ten-branch bank in Sioux Falls, S.D. for $5 million. Sanford bought it and renamed it First Premier. Since then it's added five branches but remains sleepy. The real action came from its credit card company.
 


Gophers_4life said:
Interesting U bits from the Forbes article, for those who didn't know (myself included):

Sanford was born in St. Paul, Minn. His father ran a wholesale garment business. When he was 4, he lost his mother. At 8 he started working every afternoon and weekend, stocking his father's shelves. The summer after graduating from high school he was arrested during a drunken brawl. That earned him a 90-day sentence in juvenile detention. A judge let him out on day 36, after he agreed to enroll at the University of Minnesota.

At age 20 Sanford lost his father, as well. Graduation in 1958 led to a sales job with Armstrong Cork. After a year he started his own firm, Contech, representing manufacturers of construction materials. Contech went public in 1972. Ten years later, with 350 employees and $35 million in sales, Milwaukee conglomerate Rexnord bought it for $28 million. Sanford's take was $20 million.

Then 45, with two kids in college, Sanford tried to relax. He moved with his wife to Clearwater, Fla. He lowered his golf handicap to five and contemplated qualifying for the Senior pga tour. "That turned out to be a joke," Sanford says, though he sometimes plays in up to four golf tournaments a week.

Soon divorced and back in Minnesota, Sanford dabbled in venture capital. In 1986 he helped out a friend who was going through a divorce and needed to unload a ten-branch bank in Sioux Falls, S.D. for $5 million. Sanford bought it and renamed it First Premier. Since then it's added five branches but remains sleepy. The real action came from its credit card company.
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Premier seems to specialize in subprime credit cards?
 



All this said -- and I realize I risk sinking this thread to the OTB -- my answer to Sanford's blatant ransom attempt is: No.

N. O.

The merged company must be HQ'ed in Minnesota. End of story.
 




Gophers_4life said:
All this said -- and I realize I risk sinking this thread to the OTB -- my answer to Sanford's blatant ransom attempt is: No.

N. O.

The merged company must be HQ'ed in Minnesota. End of story.
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I doubt the little brother tells the big brother what to do.
 

GopherLaundry2013 said:
Yes! T Denny made his fortune by charging significant interest rates to lower income households
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Opinions will probably vary on whether this is an admirable way to make money. Does he operate out of South Dakota due to usury laws, tax treatment, or both? I recall South Dakota doesn’t restrain max interest rate but not sure in the particulars at the moment.
 


Pompous Elitist said:
Opinions will probably vary on whether this is an admirable way to make money. Does he operate out of South Dakota due to usury laws, tax treatment, or both? I recall South Dakota doesn’t restrain max interest rate but not sure in the particulars at the moment.
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They changed their laws to try to attract credit card companies to move there from Delaware.

My guess is those changes were not more restrictive of what they could get away with.
 


Gophers_4life said:
All this said -- and I realize I risk sinking this thread to the OTB -- my answer to Sanford's blatant ransom attempt is: No.

N. O.

The merged company must be HQ'ed in Minnesota. End of story.
Click to expand...
Fairview is an academic hospital, their HQ isn’t leaving the University’s physical footprint.
 
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Perhaps it was not the best decision to abandon the University hospital that was on campus and move to Fairview.
The medical school gave up a lot of control.
Sanford's hospital system has a sketchy reputation, as he does, and it would be a disaster for the medical school to merge with Sanford.
 

Gophers_4life said:
Hmm. I only remember the $35M lead gift attempt that the U asked for more on when the stadium cost doubled and he said forget it.

Confirmed in this 2007 Forbes article on him: https://www.forbes.com/forbes/2007/1008/232.html?sh=2f13a88a2d42

In 2002 Sanford had a clarifying experience. He pledged $35 million toward a $125 million football stadium for the University of Minnesota's Golden Gophers. (His "kids first" philosophy hadn't fully crystallized.) The gift turned out to be a bust after the university more than doubled the cost of the stadium and refused to give him naming rights unless he coughed up more. Sanford, fuming, withdrew the gift. His conclusion: avoid big bureaucratic institutions when it comes to charity.
Click to expand...
I’m not sure if the Forbes article is 100% correct. During that time, it was generally known that Sanford did indeed offer $35 million for the naming rights to a new stadium. But it was Sanford that put a cap on the cost of the new stadium, or he would pull his donation, and did indeed do so when the U decided it didn’t want a smaller stadium better suited for a lower division school. I think this version us mostly true because the Gophers never proposed a $125 million stadium

Also, It never made sense to me that Sanford would care how large the stadium would be, so maybe the U did pressure him to donate more for permanent naming rights once they decided on the general scope of the new stadium.
 

Gophers_4life said:
They changed their laws to try to attract credit card companies to move there from Delaware.

My guess is those changes were not more restrictive of what they could get away with.
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Sioux Falls exploded in population right around the time they changed their usury laws and Citibank moved all their credit card operations there.

And yes, Denny has some sketchiness and sleazy surrounding him. He's also built (and put his name on) a whole lot of sporting facilities in the Dakotas.
 

WAGopher said:
I’m not sure if the Forbes article is 100% correct. During that time, it was generally known that Sanford did indeed offer $35 million for the naming rights to a new stadium. But it was Sanford that put a cap on the cost of the new stadium, or he would pull his donation, and did indeed do so when the U decided it didn’t want a smaller stadium better suited for a lower division school. I think this version us mostly true because the Gophers never proposed a $125 million stadium

Also, It never made sense to me that Sanford would care how large the stadium would be, so maybe the U did pressure him to donate more for permanent naming rights once they decided on the general scope of the new stadium.
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This is how I remember it.
 

Plato said:
Perhaps it was not the best decision to abandon the University hospital that was on campus and move to Fairview.
The medical school gave up a lot of control.
Sanford's hospital system has a sketchy reputation, as he does, and it would be a disaster for the medical school to merge with Sanford.
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1st time in a long time....but I agree with you.
 

WAGopher said:
I’m not sure if the Forbes article is 100% correct. During that time, it was generally known that Sanford did indeed offer $35 million for the naming rights to a new stadium. But it was Sanford that put a cap on the cost of the new stadium, or he would pull his donation, and did indeed do so when the U decided it didn’t want a smaller stadium better suited for a lower division school. I think this version us mostly true because the Gophers never proposed a $125 million stadium

Also, It never made sense to me that Sanford would care how large the stadium would be, so maybe the U did pressure him to donate more for permanent naming rights once they decided on the general scope of the new stadium.
Click to expand...
What would Stanford's motivation be to make sure they build a smaller stadium?

$125m ... even at that time would have been way out of scale for a B1G stadium.
 

I've spent some time at the Sanford Heart Hospital in Sioux Falls, and the care I received was excellent. (the bill, now that was another story......)

Look, there are a lot of pros and cons on T. Denny, but this deserves to be part of the discussion:

Sanford, 87, is a Minnesotan-turned-South Dakotan with a fortune estimated to be between $2 billion and $3 billion. Over the last 20 years, he's given nearly $1.5 billion to Sanford Health and, according to documents disclosed Monday, has pledged the bulk of his estate to the health system on his death.

for whatever reasons or motivation, the guy has basically given away most of the money he's earned. would any of us do the same? so if he wants to slap his name on a bunch of buildings, that's his perogative.

BTW - the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls is a really fun arena with an old-style "Hoosiers" like main court. If you ever get a chance, you should take in a game there.
 

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