Illinois Lawmakers Revive Bears Stadium Push With 1 Public Authority Plan as $1 Billion Indiana Offer Looms
Updated
Updated · NBC Chicago · May 31
Illinois Lawmakers Revive Bears Stadium Push With 1 Public Authority Plan as $1 Billion Indiana Offer Looms
12 articles · Updated · NBC Chicago · May 31
Late Sunday, Illinois lawmakers raced toward a midnight adjournment deadline with a fallback stadium plan after the Bears-backed "megaprojects" bill failed to secure enough Senate votes.
The new approach would let Cook County municipalities create a public stadium authority, so Arlington Heights or Chicago could own a Bears stadium while the team funds construction and avoids property taxes.
The earlier bill collapsed after bipartisan resistance to locking in reduced tax payments, with Chicago lawmakers opposing incentives to leave the city and others warning school funding burdens could shift to other Cook County taxpayers.
Chicago Democrats and suburban Republicans were said to be open to the new framework, though bill language had not been filed, Arlington Heights' mayor stressed private investment, and the Bears had not publicly responded.
Indiana has intensified the pressure with up to $1 billion in incentives for a Hammond site near Chicago, though critics say the location is close to a Superfund site and could require costly cleanup.
Can a new stadium deal offer the Bears more savings while protecting Illinois taxpayers?
Beyond taxes, what hidden financial risks will ultimately pick the Bears' new home?