Sports
Wait Until Next Year For Bears’ Ownership Stadium Plan
Bears’ ownership wants to build a stadium in Arlington Heights.
It is wait until next year for the National Football League Chicago Bears ownership in its quest to get public money for a planned stadium-village in Arlington Heights, Illinois. The Bears ownership failed twice to get money from the Illinois state lawmakers in 2025 but next year isn’t very far away. The Illinois General Assembly starts on January 16th, 2026. Bears’ ownership has decided that Arlington Heights, a Chicago suburb is the right place for its stadium-village after running into opposition in Chicago over its plan to build a stadium-village in a Solider Field parking lot.
The Bears ownership’s stadium-village plan was first revealed in 2023. The Bears’ ownership bought the Arlington Park racetrack property in the Chicago suburb in Arlington Heights in February 2023 for $197 million. Bears’ ownership was set to build a stadium-village in town but then came the property tax bill. Bears’ ownership was alarmed with the tab and decided Chicago was a better option. In April 2024, Bears’ ownership unveiled a plan to build a domed lakefront stadium and surround the structure with a residential and retail zone. The McCaskey family, the owners of the football business, claimed they were willing to throw in about $2 billion to help finance the venture but they also said they needed public support. The McCaskeys claimed they would put up $2.025 billion and would get a $300 million loan from the NFL. The McCaskeys wanted at least $900 million in bonds from the Illinois Sports Facilities Authority. That funding would include extending bonds of an existing 2% hotel tax. That means people using hotels and motels would be paying for a football stadium that more than likely the hotel and motel users would never step foot in. The Bears ownership’s stadium-village saga continues.
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