Bears To Submit Traffic And Financial Studies For Arlington Heights Stadium Site

The Chicago Bears will send a traffic and economic impact study for its potential Arlington Heights stadium site to the village board within the coming weeks, suggesting a suburban stadium is still in play even as the team pursues a lakefront venue in Chicago.

The Bears purchased the former Arlington International Racecourse in the Chicago suburb for $197.2M in 2023. The site was initially a front-runner to become the team's new home, but disputes over property tax assessments put the suburban location on pause.

Arlington Heights Mayor Tom Hayes said reports that the team had reached a deal to build a new enclosed stadium in his town were “speculation,” according to the Chicago Tribune.

“We think things are heading in a very positive direction,” he told the Tribune. “But there’s certainly no done deal yet.”

The village board will meet Monday to consider hiring a consultant to assess the pair of studies, which the team held off on delivering during the property tax dispute. Arlington Heights, local schools and the Bears reached an agreement on property taxes late last year.

The team's process to build a new stadium in Chicago or its surrounding suburbs has stretched for years. 

The team most recently proposed a mixed-use stadium project near Soldier Field with a $4.7B all-in cost that would be partially financed by taxpayer dollars. That plan seemingly stalled in 2024 after Gov. J.B. Pritzker opposed public financing for any new stadium project and lawmakers didn't take up the proposal.  

Pritzker's chief of staff, Anne Caprara, and Deputy Gov. Andy Manar met with team leadership last May to review the stadium plans and came away unconvinced. Pritzker wasn't present. 

“The current proposal is a non-starter for the state,” Pritzker's press secretary, Alex Gough, said in a statement at the time. “To subsidize a brand new stadium for a privately owned sports team, the Governor would need to see a demonstrable and tangible benefit to the taxpayers of Illinois.”

Bears officials said the team is still focused on a Chicago site, adding they will monitor the spring legislative session.

“We continue to have productive conversations with the village and school districts and are aligned on a framework should we choose to explore a potential development,” the team said in a statement following last year's tax agreement with Arlington Heights.