The Chicago Bears stadium legislation is finally here — and lots of folks have a gripe about it.
The Bears say the bill needs changes. The Chicago Teachers Union says it doesn’t protect schools. The taxpayer group Americans for Prosperity is outraged.
It’s said that compromise leaves everyone unhappy. If so, this bill may have nailed it. Even its supporters say it needs work.
What to know about the Chicago Bears’ possible move from Soldier Field
But one outcome seems increasingly likely from recent events: The Bears are leaving Chicago. The question is, for where — Indiana or Arlington Heights?
The legislation in question would help the team build a new, enclosed, $2 billion stadium on the site of the former Arlington International Racecourse. The Illinois House of Representatives voted 78-32 Wednesday to let the Bears negotiate long-term property tax breaks for the site with local schools and other taxing bodies.
The measure now goes to the state Senate, which convenes Tuesday. It has until May 31 to act on the legislation before its session is scheduled to end. Indiana lawmakers already authorized building a new stadium for the Bears in Hammond. Now the team is trying to decide between competing offers.
So what has to happen for the Bears to choose Illinois — and is it worth it?
The team issued a statement after the House approval welcoming the vote as progress, but saying that “additional amendments are necessary” to make the project feasible.
The Bears would not clarify publicly what those changes might be. But perhaps the biggest recent change in the legislation was the requirement that half of any special payments made by the team would go to the state and local homeowners for property tax relief.
That money would come out of payments made to local schools and other governmental units. So local schools and other governmental units presumably would have to ask for twice as much money to get the same amount, which might make such a deal financially impossible.
Stacy Davis Gates, who helps lead the Illinois Federation of Teachers and the Chicago Teachers Union, wrote that leaders are concerned the legislation “does not go far enough” for schools to capture the growth in the value of the new development.
On the other side of the equation, the Illinois chapter of Libertarian Americans for Prosperity issued a statement calling the bill a “reckless” measure “to put ultra-wealthy developers ahead of taxpayers.”
The group noted that the legislation would apply not just to the Bears, but to any developer of large “megaprojects” statewide, shifting the property tax burden onto other taxpayers with no new protections. The group pledged to target the 10 Republicans who joined Democrats in approving the bill.
In the face of criticism from many directions, state Rep. Kam Buckner, a Chicago Democrat who helped lead House negotiations over the bill, countered that many lawmakers were satisfied with the changes that were made to the legislation. But he allowed that it may need tweaks.
“I got some marching orders from my caucus to put together an amendment that looked more like what was important to us,” Buckner said before the legislation was passed. “… I think our job right now is to try to move this forward, and if there are more conversations that need to be had, of course, we’ll have those.”
One body that expressed no reservations about the bill was the village of Arlington Heights, which issued a statement calling the bill’s passage “a major accomplishment and meaningful leap forward.”
“I’m truly encouraged by (the legislation’s) progress and optimistic that we can maintain this momentum,” Mayor Jim Tinaglia said about the legislative process.
Meanwhile, a few state senators contacted by the Tribune signaled being open to supporting the legislation but acknowledged still having unanswered questions about it.
State Sen. Mark Walker, a Democrat from Arlington Heights, said Thursday he needs to read the new legislation, but from what he knows, the bill’s contents were “a little bit surprising.” But he said he understands that Buckner faced challenges with the legislation and needed to respond to concerns from his caucus.
“We’re going to have to see what works financially because I don’t think we want the school districts locally here in Arlington Heights to lose out, despite the fact that we want to help some other elements in the state, especially on property taxes,” Walker said. “So, we have yet to work that out.”
“I think it’s workable,” he said. “I’m sure it is technically whether it is going to cost the Bears more money and what their reaction to it is a whole different question.”
State Sen. Robert Peters, a Chicago Democrat whose district includes Soldier Field, indicated his openness to a provision of the bill that could spur economic development around railroad tracks if it were to somehow bring in affordable housing.
But his focus is ensuring that Soldier Field “maintains being a premier entertainment venue” and that it has the infrastructure it needs to thrive. He said this preferably would include the Bears but it’s also about the stadium being a top destination for entertainment such as a Taylor Swift or Beyoncé concert.
“My No. 1 focus right now … is making sure that Soldier Field and the area around Soldier Field maintains its prestige,” Peters said. “And so, I’m going to look more into it but, like, you know, I’m not going to say ‘no’ into building housing and apartments and that kind of stuff. But I think the main thing is that we cannot allow a world-class venue, a unique world-class venue, left in a lurch. And make sure that we’re putting proper investment in there.”
Speaking after an unrelated event on Friday, Gov. JB Pritzker said the Bears want to ensure, among other things, that an amusement tax won’t be imposed in the legislation if the team chooses to relocate to Arlington Heights. He also said there’s a need “for speed” in the negotiations, that the Senate has work to do “and there will be amendments, no doubt about it.”
“The NFL has a meeting next week. It’s not going to completely flip the script, and all of a sudden, on that date, you’re going to see Indiana is being chosen if Illinois doesn’t have a bill,” Pritzker said. “Having said that, if there is not true progress that gets made, if it isn’t obvious to people that the Senate is moving in the right direction, I think that will make it challenging. But we’re all working together.”
Tribune reporter Olivia Olander contributed.
