As the Chicago Bears have marched inexorably downfield towards a potential new suburban house, so has Mayor Lori Lightfoot taken steps to think about a future at Soldier Field with out them whereas making an attempt to make the case they need to keep put.
The divorce is way from a foregone conclusion, even after group officers introduced Wednesday the long-awaited buy of land in Arlington Heights the place they may construct a stadium and futuristic leisure and housing combo complicated. The Bears have merely taken the following step, one they’ve been telegraphing for over a 12 months.
But because the Lightfoot administration and the group get all the way down to the brass tacks of determining whether or not the Bears will depart, it’s price revisiting what the realm in and across the historic lakefront stadium may seem like whether it is stripped of its longtime, highest-profile tenant.
Friends of the Parks Executive Director Juanita Irizarry served on a 2022 panel Lightfoot created to determine what a modernized Museum Campus may seem like with or with out the Bears.
If the group leaves Soldier Field, Irizarry mentioned she hopes the stadium can host many extra live shows annually, easing the more and more controversial burden on neighborhood parks for large musical occasions similar to Riot Fest in Douglass Park and the lately introduced Re:SET pageant in Riis Park.
“A review of the Park District budget over the past few years would reveal that the Park District has actually been growing its revenue in terms of using Soldier Field for more events that are non-football events, and there’s more potential there,” Irizarry mentioned. “But the limitations that have been imposed by a contract with the Bears have really gotten in the way of further growth of that revenue. So we think this would be a great chance to look at that.”
In 2021, Lightfoot responded to information of the Bears in search of a greener gridiron with a multipronged strategy. She made a pitch for them to remain, saying she was dedicated to retaining them within the metropolis and, in sometimes hard-nosed vogue, mentioned she anticipated the group to observe by means of on its dedication to Chicago. The Bears’ lease for Soldier Field runs by means of 2033 however it may be damaged if the group pays a penalty.
In a press release Wednesday in response to the Bears closing on the suburban sale, the Lightfoot administration mentioned the mayor stays devoted to reaching a deal to maintain the group’s house stadium at Soldier Field.
“Today’s news about the closure of the Bears’ option in Arlington Heights has been anticipated for some time. Nonetheless, all of us die-hard Bears’ fans, the Mayor included, know and believe that the Chicago Bears should remain in Chicago,” the assertion learn, underscoring that the group’s title is the “Chicago” Bears. “So, now that the land deal has closed, we have an even better opportunity to continue making the business case as to why the Bears should remain in Chicago and why adaptations to Soldier Field can meet and exceed all of the Bear’s future needs.”
The group’s transfer to lastly purchase the previous Arlington International Racecourse parcel may truly make it simpler for town to attempt to work a deal for them to remain, whereas the Lightfoot administration prepares for a doubtlessly Bears-less future.
The Bears have repeatedly responded in current months to questions on their plans by reiterating that as a consequence of “mutual agreement with the seller of (the Arlington Heights) property, we are not pursuing alternative stadium deals or sites, including renovations to Soldier Field, while we are under contract.”
Now they’re free to barter once more, although it stays to be seen whether or not they have any curiosity in severely contemplating staying within the metropolis.
Veteran political strategist Delmarie Cobb, for one, thinks the Bears’ ship has already sailed.
“I think really now that they’ve seen the other side of the fence, and the grass is greener, I think they’re really going to pursue Arlington Heights and this is not really being used as a bargaining chip,” Cobb mentioned. “I think they see a way to have multiple revenue streams for themselves, where they didn’t before and I think that’s what’s really driving this whole decision.”
While town’s working group imagined a Soldier Field with out the Bears, it additionally proposed concepts to maintain them on the lakefront stadium and “to develop a vision for a more accessible, relevant, and attractive Museum Campus that is activated year-round.”
Last July, the group launched a report calling for know-how upgrades contained in the stadium to enhance the fan expertise and a possible naming-rights deal to lift extra money for the Chicago Park District that owns it.
It additionally referred to as for Soldier Field to be higher linked with the encircling lakefront.
“Additional attractions should be integrated into the stadium or into areas adjacent to the Museum Campus. These attractions could enhance the game day experience while also encouraging visitors to explore the campus on non-gamedays,” the report said. “Additional restaurants could improve visitor experience during major events but be incorporated in ways that also allow them to be convenient, accessible options to serve the public on nonevent days. This would make Soldier Field more dynamic while addressing a campuswide scarcity of food and beverage options.”
And Lightfoot unveiled plans in July to tailor Soldier Field to a future with or with out the group, saying a proposal to surround the stadium with a dome, rebuild it to make it “dome ready” with columns at each finish zones or modify the venue as a multipurpose facility higher fitted to soccer “while improving its flexibility” for different occasions.
That mission may price $2.2 billion or extra. Lightfoot hasn’t mentioned how town would pay for the mission.
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Source: www.bostonherald.com