The board of the Minneapolis Downtown Council on Thursday endorsed privately led efforts to keep the Minnesota Twins and the Vikings in town. "We believe that the preservation of already existing professional sports teams is critical to our position as a world-class city," the group said in resolutions in support of the teams.

The Twins resolution specifically endorsed the effort of New Ballpark Inc., a group of business leaders that is studying the feasibility of a small, urban baseball stadium in Minneapolis.

The second resolution said the concern about baseball "opens the door of opportunity to finally reach a solution on how to preserve football in our community as well."

The meeting of the board was closed, but Downtown Council President Sam Grabarski said the vote on both resolutions was unanimous.

Similar resolutions already have been approved by the Minneapolis City Council, the Greater Minneapolis Chamber of Commerce and a committee of the Hennepin County Board.