Bears brass looking for quick movement on a new stadium to open by 2030
· Yahoo Sports
CHICAGO — Chicago Bears leaders said Wednesday they want a quick resolution to their search for a new stadium, with a goal of opening a new enclosed stadium by 2030 — either in Arlington Heights or Indiana.
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Team President and CEO Kevin Warren put a rough timeline on plans to build a new enclosed stadium, hoping to choose a site by this spring or summer, he told reporters at the NFL owners meeting in Phoenix on Wednesday.
“I mean, the costs are going up,” Warren said. “The financial markets are, they’re, because of the war (in Iran), all the different things we have going on, they can be a little uncertain. So it’s time for us to make a decision, and then to be able to finish the design, based upon the location and be in a position to build and open up by 2030.”
Team officials still are waiting for Illinois lawmakers to approve a proposal that would let the Bears negotiate long-term property tax breaks with local schools and other governmental agencies for a site in Arlington Heights. Gov. JB Pritzker has endorsed the team’s plan to build its own $2 billion stadium, while the state would pay an estimated $855 million for roads and other infrastructure — but Chicago lawmakers are reluctant to help the team leave the city.
As an alternative, Indiana lawmakers last month authorized building a new stadium in Hammond, with the team kicking in $2 billion and the state using new taxes to pay about $1 billion. Bears officials are doing their “due diligence” to finalize site plans for a stadium, while they pressure Illinois to make a counteroffer.
Despite environmental concerns raised by local residents, Warren said the team has already checked the site for any needed remediation or cleanup and found “no issues there.” He added that the site, likely at Lost Marsh Golf Course near Wolf Lake, is “big” at 340 acres, saying it’s a good site “structurally.”
“It’s a really good site that we feel comfortable with, and we feel comfortable with the site in Arlington Heights, so we’ll just keep pushing forward,” Warren said.
The team is working with Indiana officials to determine infrastructure needs like transportation and parking, Warren said.
“Yeah, we’ll work through all the final details of the term sheet from an infrastructure standpoint, but we have a kind of meeting of the minds of what that would look like,” he said. “But part of this due diligence while we’re doing it, that will dictate as far as what are the final things that are needed from an infrastructure standpoint. So once we get that done, then we could finish up.”
Addressing the lack of nearby hotels, Warren said Chicago is close enough to both Gary and Arlington Heights that the city would provide hotels, restaurants and other amenities to visitors. The Bears will learn from the Ricketts family’s development around Wrigley Field, with Warren saying they’ve done “a fantastic job.”
“And like how they fit the hotel and the restaurant and Gallagher Way, I mean, it’s exciting to go to Wrigleyville around there,” he said. “I think that’s the best baseball environment in all of the major leagues.”
Wherever the stadium ends up, Chairman George McCaskey confirmed that the team, valued by Forbes at about $9 billion, would have to take out a loan to come up with at least $2 billion for an enclosed stadium. But any stadium financing would not affect football operations, he emphasized.
“We’re going to have to borrow it,” McCaskey said “Because we don’t have it. That’s where the risk comes in.”
McCaskey pointed out that his grandfather, team founder George Halas, played for the Hammond All Stars football team in 1919, adding that he thinks fans would get used to driving to Indiana, if necessary, comparing it to the New York Giants and Jets relocating years ago to New Jersey.
“I don’t think in the end it’s going to matter to people,” he said. “… And whether we go to Arlington Park or to Hammond, there is going to be an adjustment period. People are going to have to be allowed some time to get used to it. I think Bears fans are up to it.”
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