Bears' new stadium plans face skepticism from Illinois lawmakers
CHICAGO - The Chicago Bears met with the Illinois governor's office on Wednesday to discuss the team's new stadium proposal.
Last week, the Bears announced plans for a new domed stadium along the lakefront, just one day before the 2024 NFL Draft kicked off.
The Bears projected the stadium will cost $3.225 billion. Over $2 billion in funding would come from the Bears and the NFL. The remaining 28% of costs, or $900 million, would come from a proposed Illinois Sports Facilities Authority bond funding.
Designed to host global sporting events as well as high-profile entertainment acts, the enclosed stadium complex will also incorporate 14 acres of green spaces and athletic fields with access to the lakefront for families and fans.
The new design will prominently feature Soldier Field's historic colonnades. The team said the space will be available year-round for recreational and community events.
The Bears will need state lawmakers to get behind and approve state tax money for their new domed stadium and new plans for the museum park campus and lakefront. Still, after the meeting Wednesday, it sounded like the decision-makers in Springfield weren't fans of the plan.
The governor's press secretary called the current stadium proposal a "non-starter." He said the governor needed to see what he called "tangible benefit" to taxpayers -- before approving public funds for a private stadium.
The governor himself was not at the meeting. However, he responded to questions about the new proposal after an event he attended Wednesday afternoon.
"It's not a high priority for the taxpayers and very importantly, it's gotta be a good deal for taxpayers, so there's a lot of questions about whether the deal could get done. I'm very hopeful that they could put something on the table, but you've got to remember that we have a lot of priorities for the state of Illinois. We've been making an awful lot of progress and making capital investments for the state and nobody had a new stadium on that list," said Gov. J.B. Pritzker.
The Bears released the following statement following the meeting:
"We had a productive conversation with the Governor’s office. We share a commitment to protecting the taxpayers of Illinois and look forward to further discussions."
Below is the full statement released by the Press Secretary for Gov. J.B. Pritzker's Office, Alex Gough:
"Today, Chief of Staff Anne Caprara and Deputy Governor Andy Manar met with the Chicago Bears organization to discuss the team’s stadium proposal. The Governor’s Office appreciates the opportunity to discuss the Bears’ proposal and appreciates the organization for taking the time to discuss it.
As the Governor has said, the current proposal is a non-starter for the state. In order 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. The Governor’s office remains open to conversations with the Bears, lawmakers, and other stakeholders with the understanding that responsible fiscal stewardship of tax-payer dollars remains the foremost priority."