CHICAGO (WLS) — Governor JB Pritzker is making efforts to ease worries over the potential for a Chicago Bears stadium in Illinois, despite delays from state legislators.
His remarks on Tuesday hinted at a possible divergence of views with Mayor Brandon Johnson regarding the prospects of keeping the team within city limits.
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State legislators are not scheduled to reconvene in Springfield for over two weeks, meaning there will be no legislative action until later this month. This delay affects a proposed bill aimed at facilitating state funding for critical infrastructure around the Arlington Heights site, where the Bears are contemplating constructing a new stadium.
Pritzker commented, “Obviously, we’re eager to expedite this process through the legislature, but it’s ultimately in the hands of the legislators. We want to see it completed for the Bears’ sake.”
The Chicago Bears are exploring alternatives to Soldier Field, including the possibility of building a domed stadium as part of a broader development in Arlington Heights or relocating to a publicly funded stadium near Wolf Lake in Hammond, Indiana.
The Arlington Heights location would necessitate state-sponsored infrastructure upgrades in the surrounding area, a matter still under discussion among Springfield lawmakers.
“I think the most important thing for us, and I think we’ve been very clear with the Bears organization, it’s not just about getting this done, but getting it right,” said state Rep. Kam Buckner, D-Chicago.
Mayor Johnson is still holding on to the seemingly unlikely chance that the Bears could stay in the city, suggesting if Chicago had been offered similar infrastructure help as is being debated for Arlington Heights, it might have changed the conversation.
“The Bears have already shown a willingness to work with my administration to keep the Bears in the city of Chicago despite whatever other false information is promulgated,” Johnson said.
“Indeed, if there were a place in the city of Chicago that the Bears said this is where we want to put a stadium, we would be talking about infrastructure for that. That is not what they’ve said. They literally have said, they’ve looked at every site that is available,” Pritzker said.
But negotiations also involve appeasing some 40 state lawmakers representing Chicago.
“I think what’s important for us is to make sure that whatever happens here is something that we are not regretting as a delegation, and that the right things are done. I also want to say, Craig, that this is not a hostage negotiation. This is a conversation about economic development,” Buckner said.
A group named Hoosiers for Responsible Taxation has launched a website with a video opposing a taxpayer-funded stadium for the Bears.
It comes after Gov. Mike Braun signed legislation to approve a stadium authority to pursue the possibility of luring the Bears to Hammond.
Buckner remains confident Illinois will get a deal done to keep the Bears somewhere on this side of the border.
“We need to get to a point where everybody is on the same page, and everybody has gotten at least some piece of what they need in this conversation. And so I think the governor is right. The mayor is right. I think that we got to continue to figure out how to move forward,” Buckner said.
The Bears did not immediately respond to a request for comment on where negotiations are from their standpoint.
Buckner did note that stadium deals involve complicated negotiations, which just take time.
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