The Chicago Bears spent most of the past year working hard to get something off the ground on a downtown stadium south of Soldier Field. Team president Kevin Warren’s main objective was to get something off the ground. It never materialized. Illinois governor J.B. Pritzker refused to seriously entertain the idea, feeling such a plan had few benefits for the state. Within the past few weeks, there has been a noticeable shift. All signs now point to the Bears returning their focus to building a stadium on the Arlington Heights property.
It always made more sense. They officially own the 326 acres involved. The only thing standing in their way was a protracted battle with the school districts about property taxes. Both sides reached an agreement on that earlier this year. That left one hurdle left to clear. Warren needed legislation passed in Springfield on the issue to clear the way for them to start building. There was one problem.
The Illinois assembly adjourned on May 31st.
Nothing got done. However, according to Olivia Olander of the Chicago Tribune, the two sides were much closer to a deal than people realized—close enough that it could be done during the brief session that takes place in the fall. If so, it means the Bears can begin construction before the year ends.
While the Illinois General Assembly didn’t end up passing legislation this session that helped or hurt the Chicago Bears’ stadium efforts, one suburban lawmaker said the legislature got close to a deal on property tax legislation — a measure widely seen as a way to ease a team move to Arlington Heights.
“We were super close and just ran out of time,” state Rep. Mary Beth Canty, a Democrat who represents the northwest suburb and surrounding areas, said Sunday.
The team in mid-May announced it was shifting its focus away from building a new lakefront stadium in Chicago to Arlington Heights, where it purchased the former Arlington International Racecourse property two years ago. Though the spring legislative session ended as the calendar turned to June on Saturday night, legislators will likely get another chance to pass legislation in the fall.
The Chicago Bears can still achieve their goal.
Warren stated his endgame was getting shovels in the ground by 2025. He has six months left to make that happen. If the legislation passes in the fall, they should have everything necessary to get the ball rolling. The timeline is three years. That is how long the construction should take once it begins. The Chicago Bears could start playing in their new stadium by the dawn of the 2029 season. It still feels like that might be too optimistic. This process has been far rockier than many had hoped, which is no surprise. Illinois politics always finds a way to muddy the waters. Still, the Bears are in the home stretch. One more deal to close, and they can get across the finish line.
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