SPRINGFIELD—Tickets to games and other events at the Chicago Bears’ proposed Arlington Heights development include a ticket to Illinois on Thursday in an attempt to revitalize deadlocked negotiations over state aid to the team. A $3 per person tax will be imposed under the law before the state legislature. Anticipated camp removal to northwestern suburbs.
Proceeds from the $3 admission tax will help pay off the debt incurred 20 years ago to fund the renovation of Soldier Field.
The initial reaction to the proposal was lukewarm from suburbs, city councilors and the Bears. But the bill’s main sponsors said the move is an effort to keep the conversation about Bears Stadium’s future under a month ahead of the scheduled end of the spring legislative session.
State Rep. Marty Moylan, a Des Plaines Democrat and former Northwest Suburbs mayor, said one of the bill’s goals was to support the Bears’ move, especially with the city still in crisis. He said his goal was to win support from lawmakers in Chicago, who were reluctant to do so. For the renovation of the team’s long-standing residence on the lake.
“This is a living document. If there are issues that we think are related to the bill, we will submit amendments to change it. But now we have the bill. People are thrilled with the support,” Moylan said Thursday. “I need to get 60 votes and that’s how we do it. are working on.”
The move incorporates elements the Bears have sought to help move to the suburbs, including freezing the property tax valuation of the 326-acre former Arlington International Racecourse, which the team purchased earlier this year for $197 million. I’m here. In addition to the enclosed stadium, the team’s plans call for extensive entertainment and residential development.
The measure to enforce the evaluation freeze, with the team negotiating and making payments to the village of Arlington Heights and other local tax agencies, was introduced by the Illinois Senate earlier this year, but even the bill’s sponsors Having expressed reservations, it was unable to gain momentum.
Moylan’s proposal includes a similar setup, but with a local oversight committee made up of representatives from local tax authorities and state legislatures who must approve incentive agreements or zoning decisions within the project site. create.
The plan pools revenue generated at the site from state sales taxes, hotel taxes, liquor taxes and a new 3% surcharge on sports betting to help Arlington Heights and surrounding communities pay for infrastructure improvements. It is also planned to support
Arlington Heights will receive 35% of the proceeds, Cook County, Palatine and Rolling Meadows will each receive 10% and 7% each will go to Buffalo Grove, Elk Grove Village, Mount Prospect, Prospect Heights and Wheeling.
Despite Moylan’s optimism that his plan would provide a route to negotiations, local officials were caught off-guard by the introduction.
Arlington Heights officials learned of it Thursday morning, said village manager Randy Reclaus.
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“I can tell you that no one in the village was consulted on the drafting of this bill, nor, to our knowledge, were there any stakeholders in the project,” Leklaus said in an email. “The Village will work with the Chicago Bears Football Club, neighboring communities, local school districts, and all other stakeholders to investigate the development of the site and ensure that anything built there is in the best interest of the community. and the surrounding area.”
The Bears have said they will pay to build a new stadium, but only if they get tax “certainty” and public funding for infrastructure such as roads, utilities and stormwater management. We plan to pursue a $5 billion mixed-use development. The apartments, condominiums, and other developments planned at this location will be constructed by private developers. This could mean additional costs for local school students.
Officials at Township High School District 214, based in Arlington Heights, one of three districts to see changes in tax revenue under the Senate Freeze Assessment Act, said they were “not consulted” about the latest proposal. said co-interim superintendent Kenneth Arndt. The district is “currently reviewing the proposed legislation,” Arndt said.
Rep. Mark Walker of Arlington Heights, who submitted another proposal to the House to mirror the stalled Senate bill, said he was familiar with Moylan’s bill but had not thoroughly considered it.
“I read a paragraph about it,” he told the Tribune Thursday afternoon. “I don’t know who Marty spoke to. I think it’s a collection of new ideas for people to discuss.”
Rep. Kam Buckner, a Chicago Democrat whose constituency includes Soldier Field, said he hadn’t considered the bill yet, but reiterated his past position on the Bears’ move to Arlington Heights, adding that the state’s backing of the team would be a no-brainer. He said he does not support funding. By taking that option.
“The general meeting should not take the stance of giving a huge subsidy for the Chicago Bears to leave the city of Chicago,” he said. “I want to find smart ways to keep bears at home and make this work for all of us.”
The Bears have declined to comment on the latest proposal at Springfield, but have in the past resented the idea that the team would be obliged to pay off debt related to Soldier Field’s previous renovations.
Due to refinancing and years of paying primarily interest rather than principal, the debt ballooned from the original $399 million to $631 million.
Chicago’s hotel tax was supposed to pay off debt, but business losses from the COVID-19 pandemic and restrictions forced the city to pay $27 million in debt last year.
With annual payments rising to $90 million by 2032, there are questions as to whether the hotel tax will be enough to pay off the debt.
If the Bears relinquish the Soldier Field lease early, say in 2026, they face an $84 million penalty. Team officials previously told the Tribune that he paid more than $200 million to build the stadium, and in total, since 2003, he has paid more than $118 million in rent.
“Repayment of the bonds is not the responsibility of the Bears and is in no way contingent on the team’s home game at Soldier Field,” the team said in a statement issued earlier this year. “Any suggestion that leads people to believe that the Bears are responsible for some of the bond payments or that the payment of the bond debt is dependent on the team’s home games at Soldier Field is completely misleading. is.”
The legislative session ends days after Cook County Commissioner Brandon Johnson is sworn in as Chicago’s new mayor. Johnson said he supported the Bears staying in Chicago and asked the team not to make a decision before he took office, but he made no commitments on how to keep the team, and Mayor Lori Lightfoot said he would endorse ties with both cities. said it had “exacerbated” team and city.
Gov. JB Pritzker has previously expressed skepticism about providing state help to help move teams, other than helping pay for infrastructure as they do for other large projects. was doing.
Pritzker spokesman Alex Gaff said Thursday of Moylan’s bill, “The governor looks forward to considering the proposal as it moves through the legislative process.
Kubzansky, McCoppin, and Petrella reported from Chicago. Tribune reporter Rick Pearson contributed.
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