Whoa.
It seems that the Chicago Bears aren’t putting all their stadium eggs in the Arlington Heights basket after all.
In a statement released by Scott Hagel, senior vice president of marketing and communications for the Bears, the team indicated that the heavy property tax assessment recently announced on the property they acquired at the old Arlington International Racecourse is so daunting that they are looking at additional options outside of Arlington Heights.
Numerous news outlets are reporting that Naperville – yes, Naperville – is one of the locations they are considering.
According to Kevin Schmit of the Daily Herald, Naperville Mayor Scott Wehrli and Bears president and CEO Kevin Warren met on Friday, roughly a week after Wehrli contacted Warren, to discuss possible options for a new stadium.
The Bears purchased the 326-acre Arlington site earlier this year, and demolition has already begun in advance of building the new stadium and an expansive entertainment district surrounding it, much like the Cubs’ development of land around Wrigley field but on a much larger scale.
But with the high property assessment and uncertainties about funding for the entertainment development, the Bears appear to be open to other options. Whether this is a bargaining position designed to exert leverage over the Cook County Assessor to revise its assessment (it’s notable that Naperville is in DuPage county, not Cook) or not remains to be seen. But for Fox Valley residents, the idea of a new Bears stadium on our doorstep is too exciting to dismiss.
