SPRINGFIELD – In a last-minute bid to keep the Chicago Bears in Illinois, lawmakers are calling an audible.
Two sources close to negotiations confirmed that legislation is being crafted that would enable local governments to set up their own stadium authorities — a mechanism that would allow the Bears to escape paying property taxes altogether. The exact details, however, haven’t been made public.
Top lawmakers had to pivot after a megaprojects bill that would have allowed the team to negotiate and lock in a lower property tax payment with local governments for up to 40 years collapsed in the waning hours of the spring legislative session.
Sen. Bill Cunningham, D-Chicago, the lead Senate negotiator of the megaprojects bill, told reporters Saturday evening that the bill did not have enough support to pass the chamber. That was mainly due to discomfort with the large tax breaks the PILOT would allow as well as the desire from Chicago members to “put the city on an equal plane” to “compete” for a stadium project.
This competition would apparently be spurred by authorizing municipalities to form their own stadium authorities, meaning Chicago could put together a proposal that would offer the Bears the same level of real estate tax certainty they would receive at the 326-acre site they own in Arlington Heights.
The Bears have said they are only focused on a privately-owned stadium in Arlington Heights or a publicly owned stadium site near Wolf Lake in Hammond, Indiana. But Cunningham told reporters that “the Bears have met repeatedly with the City of Chicago over the last several months to talk about” potentially staying in the city.
It is not immediately clear if the parameters of the new proposal would be acceptable to the Bears, who did not immediately return a request for comment over the weekend.
The deal would be closer to the structure of Indiana’s, which calls for more than $1 billion in public subsidies to build a publicly owned stadium. The Bears would keep all revenue generated by the building and have the option to buy it for $1 once bonds are paid off.
Under the new Illinois proposal, a stadium would be owned by the public but financed privately. The Bears have committed $2 billion to stadium construction in both Arlington Heights and Hammond.
It’s also unclear if the idea would have support in the legislature given that the proposal would likely result in even greater savings for the Bears than under the PILOT tool.
But it could win over crucial votes in the Chicago delegation if it gives the city a shot to keep the team. The Bears have played their home games in city limits for more than 100 years.
Rep. Kam Buckner, D-Chicago, the lead House negotiator on the megaprojects bill, told reporters Sunday morning that he didn’t “know the specifics yet, but we’re looking forward to seeing them.”
“I think if people can see that a plan like this is narrowly tailored, but also, as Sen. Cunningham said, it gives the ability for the city of Chicago to have a part to play in this as well, then there could be some support,” Buckner said.
Check back for updates.
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