The Chicago Bears recently submitted a bid to purchase the property at Arlington International Racecourse, news that team President and CEO Ted Phillips announced Thursday afternoon.
Churchill Downs, which currently owns and operates the racetrack, announced last winter that the property would be up for sale for redevelopment opportunities. And the Bears now have expressed at least preliminary interest in building a stadium and developing the land around it.
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Arlington Heights mayor Tom Hayes issued a statement Thursday expressing excitement with the team’s willingness to explore the possibility of moving to the suburb.
“We welcome the Chicago Bears’ interest in the Arlington Park site,” Hayes said. “It is a one-of-a-kind location, and we are glad that the Bears ownership sees its tremendous potential. The Village will be working with the listing broker to closely review proposals by all potential users in the coming months. Whether the final purchaser is the Chicago Bears or someone else, our goal is to determine which concept will be most beneficial to Arlington Heights from a long-term economic and community-development perspective.”
The horse track is in its final year of operation under Churchill Downs. “I’m disappointed,” track President Tony Petrillo said earlier this spring. “But I also understand the economics of it.”
The Bears have played their home games at Soldier Field, which is owned by the Chicago Park District, since 1971, moving to Champaign’s Memorial Stadium for the 2002 season when Soldier Field was under renovation. Their lease at the stadium runs through 2033.
In a statement, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot said numerous organizations are “doubling down” on their commitment to the city as it recovers from the pandemic and “we expect the Chicago Bears to follow through.”
She noted the team is in the midst of negotiations for stadium improvements and their bid is “clearly a negotiating tactic that the Bears have used before.” She also reiterated the team is “locked into” its lease.
Lightfoot, who said she’s a season ticket holder, said she’s committed to keeping “Chicago” in the team’s name.
”And like most Bears fans, we want the organization to focus on putting a winning team on the field, beating the Packers finally and being relevant past October,” she added. “Everything else is noise.”
Lightfoot previously threw cold water on the idea the Bears might move to Arlington Heights. She stressed in April that the Bears have a good relationship with the city and could run into difficulties with the NFL in any attempt to break their lease. Lightfoot also acknowledged then the Bears’ interest in making changes and improvements to Soldier Field.
“We want to do whatever we can to accommodate that,” Lightfoot said at the time. “It’s a great, iconic site, but it’s a challenging site. And it’s incumbent on us as a city to step up and look at ways in which we can make sure that the Bears fans but also the Bears as an organization have the best opportunities to maximize the fan experience and of course maximize revenue. We’re going to keep those conversations going.”
Hayes appeared on “The Parkins and Spiegel Show” on WSCR-AM 670 on Tuesday, the day proposals from interested parties were due. Hayes was eager to learn more about the Bears’ intentions.
“That they’re even considering Arlington Heights is a real feather in our cap,” he said. “This is a real prime piece of real estate located ... in the northwest suburbs where a lot of the Bears fan base is. So I know there are a lot of people who would be very excited, including myself, to see the Bears in Arlington Heights.”
Whether the Bears’ expressed interest in the Arlington Park site is truly serious or part of a push to gain leverage with the city of Chicago remains to be seen. The property in Arlington Heights offers 326 acres of land and would present an opportunity for the Bears not only to build a stadium but develop the land around it with potential residences, shopping, dining and entertainment.
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In addition, the Bears would have the chance to increase capacity for home games. Soldier Field currently holds 61,500 fans, the fewest in the NFL. A new stadium in the suburbs theoretically would allow the team to build a venue with a roof that could help attract major events such as the Final Four and the Super Bowl.
“That’s what we would envision, a year-round facility that would attract events like that and would maximize the potential for that 326 acres,” Hayes told WSCR-AM 670. “That’s what I’m looking to do as the mayor of Arlington Heights — put that piece of property to its highest and best use.”
It remains possible the Arlington Park site could be purchased by someone other than the Bears and retained to continue thoroughbred racing. Churchill Downs Inc. issued a statement Tuesday saying it received “strong proposals from numerous parties.”
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Churchill Downs, which currently owns and operates the racetrack, announced last winter that the property would be up for sale for redevelopment opportunities. And the Bears now have expressed at least preliminary interest in building a stadium and developing the land around it.
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Arlington Heights mayor Tom Hayes issued a statement Thursday expressing excitement with the team’s willingness to explore the possibility of moving to the suburb.
“We welcome the Chicago Bears’ interest in the Arlington Park site,” Hayes said. “It is a one-of-a-kind location, and we are glad that the Bears ownership sees its tremendous potential. The Village will be working with the listing broker to closely review proposals by all potential users in the coming months. Whether the final purchaser is the Chicago Bears or someone else, our goal is to determine which concept will be most beneficial to Arlington Heights from a long-term economic and community-development perspective.”
The horse track is in its final year of operation under Churchill Downs. “I’m disappointed,” track President Tony Petrillo said earlier this spring. “But I also understand the economics of it.”
The Bears have played their home games at Soldier Field, which is owned by the Chicago Park District, since 1971, moving to Champaign’s Memorial Stadium for the 2002 season when Soldier Field was under renovation. Their lease at the stadium runs through 2033.
In a statement, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot said numerous organizations are “doubling down” on their commitment to the city as it recovers from the pandemic and “we expect the Chicago Bears to follow through.”
She noted the team is in the midst of negotiations for stadium improvements and their bid is “clearly a negotiating tactic that the Bears have used before.” She also reiterated the team is “locked into” its lease.
Lightfoot, who said she’s a season ticket holder, said she’s committed to keeping “Chicago” in the team’s name.
”And like most Bears fans, we want the organization to focus on putting a winning team on the field, beating the Packers finally and being relevant past October,” she added. “Everything else is noise.”
Lightfoot previously threw cold water on the idea the Bears might move to Arlington Heights. She stressed in April that the Bears have a good relationship with the city and could run into difficulties with the NFL in any attempt to break their lease. Lightfoot also acknowledged then the Bears’ interest in making changes and improvements to Soldier Field.
“We want to do whatever we can to accommodate that,” Lightfoot said at the time. “It’s a great, iconic site, but it’s a challenging site. And it’s incumbent on us as a city to step up and look at ways in which we can make sure that the Bears fans but also the Bears as an organization have the best opportunities to maximize the fan experience and of course maximize revenue. We’re going to keep those conversations going.”
Hayes appeared on “The Parkins and Spiegel Show” on WSCR-AM 670 on Tuesday, the day proposals from interested parties were due. Hayes was eager to learn more about the Bears’ intentions.
“That they’re even considering Arlington Heights is a real feather in our cap,” he said. “This is a real prime piece of real estate located ... in the northwest suburbs where a lot of the Bears fan base is. So I know there are a lot of people who would be very excited, including myself, to see the Bears in Arlington Heights.”
Whether the Bears’ expressed interest in the Arlington Park site is truly serious or part of a push to gain leverage with the city of Chicago remains to be seen. The property in Arlington Heights offers 326 acres of land and would present an opportunity for the Bears not only to build a stadium but develop the land around it with potential residences, shopping, dining and entertainment.
[Most read in Sports] 3 series takeaways after Chicago Cubs avoid a 4-game sweep with a 2-0 win against the New York Mets, including relying too much on home runs and Kyle Hendricks’ reliability »
In addition, the Bears would have the chance to increase capacity for home games. Soldier Field currently holds 61,500 fans, the fewest in the NFL. A new stadium in the suburbs theoretically would allow the team to build a venue with a roof that could help attract major events such as the Final Four and the Super Bowl.
“That’s what we would envision, a year-round facility that would attract events like that and would maximize the potential for that 326 acres,” Hayes told WSCR-AM 670. “That’s what I’m looking to do as the mayor of Arlington Heights — put that piece of property to its highest and best use.”
It remains possible the Arlington Park site could be purchased by someone other than the Bears and retained to continue thoroughbred racing. Churchill Downs Inc. issued a statement Tuesday saying it received “strong proposals from numerous parties.”
Chicago Bears submit bid to buy the Arlington International Racecourse property, opening the door to a potential Soldier Field exit
The Chicago Bears recently submitted a bid to purchase the property at Arlington International Racecourse, news that team President and CEO Ted Phillips announced Thursday afternoon. Churchill Down…
www.chicagotribune.com
