I'm not sure why the naysayers keep crowing that taxpayers will never go for a Major League Baseball ballpark in Portland. Every indication I have is that the group interested in building the thing isn't going to ask the city or state for additional public money.

There's already a $150 million bond that was passed in 2003 available to help fund the project. The remainder would be private money. So there will be no vote. No plea to taxpayers. No additional bond needed. Unless something changes, they'd just like to build a ballpark, create some jobs, raise the profile of the city and give this sports columnist one more cool place to take his wife and children on a summer night.

Everyone good with that?

I don't blame you for being skeptical. You've been here before. Notably 2003, when our good city got used in the pursuit of the Montreal Expos. They ended up in Washington, D.C. with a better stadium deal because of us. Used. Leveraged. Term it however you'd like. And so I understand why it's tough for some to get their hopes up. I was in that crowd until I started poking around, asking questions, and understanding what was happening this time.

So what's changed? Us? Or MLB? That's become the question to ask.

Answer: both.

Portland has changed a lot in the last 15 years. Our growth rate is among the top-10 in the country, and we've moved from market No. 25 to No. 22 in that span. Also, baseball has shifted from constructing mammoth multi-purpose stadiums to building cozy 36,000-seat urban hot spots. MLB wants young, vibrant, growing, good-looking markets, and Portland happens to be all of those things.

I'm watching what's happening in Oakland with the A's with great curiosity. Because that MLB operation plays in a dump and is struggling to find traction in finding a potential stadium location. The team has lost support. Season tickets have dwindled to an estimated 7,000 or so. I just don't think it's going to work out for the A's in Oakland and Portland feels poised to be the most attractive and well positioned landing spot.

So I'm in. City Hall has already been working and meeting with the dealmakers on the issue. And the group responsible for fueling all of this has worked behind the scenes with smart, calculated maneuvers that tell me they're serious about making this happen. It's an evolved effort. Not the hopeful, pollyanna pitches we've seen before with NFL, NHL and MLB.

We'll know more midweek, of course. The group is expected to release a statement outlining some of their objectives and make themselves known. I'd like to hear their plans for financing the stadium. I'd like to know more about who the group members are. I'd like to understand if they're more likely an expansion effort or a relocation effort. And I'm interested in whether they've obtained the rights for the stadium sites yet.

The vocal minority that is always in opposition of growth, and vision, and opportunity will try to find an angle here to squash this. But given that there's no additional public funding included, I'm not sure if they have much to whine about. Again, they'll find something. Always do. Probably traffic or parking. Issues that have been solved in less ambitious cities.

On Saturday night, the Blazers played a home playoff game against the Pelicans. The Timbers were home in a Major League Soccer game. The combined attendance for those events was more than 40,000. A baseball stadium would help meet the public demand for entertainment that the Timbers, Thorns and Blazers have demonstrated exists.

Is this going to happen? Is Portland going to be a MLB city? It feels more and more viable. That's different than 2003, too. In that effort, Portland was wooed by Major League representatives, who were essentially here to make Washington, D.C. nervous. This time, I get the impression that baseball would like to fly below the radar, let the stadium get done, and usher a team here.