Mayor R.T. Rybak is holding his first Vikings stadium forum tomorrow, but opponents on the Council are gearing up for a public hearing at City Hall.

Council Member Gary Schiff announced in a newsletter Monday that a public hearing will be held on April 24. It will include a key vote on whether the Council endorses redirecting convention center taxes to fund a stadium as a legislative priority.

Rybak has taken his proposal to the Council's Committee of the Whole twice, but not since the bill was introduced at the State Capitol. Neither of the previous hearings included a vote or public testimony.

Schiff said each speaker will have two minutes to testify before the Intergovernmental Relations Subcommittee, which includes all members of the Council.

The committee will then decide whether to amend the city's lobbying agenda to include formal support for the plan. That will be the first test of whether Rybak's seven letters of support translate into seven votes. Passage would also allow the city's lobbyists to advocate for the plan at the State Capitol.

Schiff and Council Member Lisa Goodman, both opponents of the mayor's plan, first pushed for the hearing last month. It will be held from 4 to 6:30 p.m. in room 317 of City Hall.

The mayor's public forum tomorrow night is slated to run from 7:30 to 8:45 at the Lake Nokomis Community Center.