The Bears’ quest for a new stadium may be heading back to where it began: Arlington Heights.
The new stadium drama has now spanned years, with two city mayors and two team presidents.
The Bears first showed interest in moving to Arlington Heights in 2022 when they bought the old Arlington Park racetrack.
But they fought with the village over taxes, and then hired Kevin Warren as president, who signaled the team wanted to stay in Chicago.
The Bears want nearly $2 billion from the state to help finance a new stadium just south of Soldier Field. Gov. JB Pritzker and state lawmakers have thrown cold water on public financing.
Since then, the tax fight over the Arlington Park land has been resolved and the Bears just announced they are doing two studies on the site’s viability, while the Arlington Heights board just voted to hire a firm to analyze the studies.
If the Bears build a new stadium on that site, it would include a new entertainment district featuring restaurants and hotels, something the team couldn’t build on the Museum Campus.
But fans may not be as excited about traveling 30 miles northwest of downtown while giving up the amazing skyline views and nearby shopping and restaurants that make Soldier Field one of the best locations in the NFL.
It’s unclear if the Bears build in Arlington Heights if they will ask the state for public financing, again.
The team could decide to privately fund the new stadium and the surrounding entertainment district, especially if the village can deliver tax breaks.
