Chicago Bears President Kevin Warren sells Arlington Heights stadium to fans before season opener

CHICAGO - Just hours before the Chicago Bears were set to kick off their 2025 season on Monday night against the Minnesota Vikings, team President and CEO Kevin Warren made a direct pitch to fans about plans to build a new stadium in suburban Arlington Heights.

‘This is the year’

What we know:

Warren said, "this is the year to finalize our stadium plans" with the aim of hosting a Super Bowl in the new stadium as soon as 2031, which would be a first in the Chicago area.

The comments were in line with what Warren said back in August about the team’s plans to build in Arlington Heights, which essentially appeared to shut the door on hopes for a new stadium in Chicago.

Still, Warren said the team does "not yet have all the answers" as it works with the village to "obtain necessary approvals" to begin construction. 

One of those answers is on legislation in the General Assembly that would allow the team to negotiate with local governments over property tax payments. State legislators did not approve the bill in the spring, but could approve it in their upcoming fall veto session. That would be more difficult in the veto session as the bill will require a three-fifths majority.

"We are partnering with political, labor, business, and community leaders across Illinois to develop a plan for property tax certainty and a fair contribution toward essential infrastructure that will benefit the entire community," Warren wrote. "Arlington Heights is the only site within Cook County that meets that standard."

Warren also added that the McCaskey family, which owns the team, aims to build the new stadium without taxpayer money, something that lawmakers at multiple levels have opposed.

The Bears purchased the 326-acre Arlington Park property in 2023 and have since worked with Arlington Heights officials for agreements on infrastructure improvements and property taxes.

The team has played nearly all of its regular season home games at Soldier Field on Chicago's lakefront since 1971. While Chicago leaders have vied to keep the team in Chicago, Warren's message seemed to shut the door on that possibility.

"Moving outside of the city of Chicago is not a decision we reached easily," he said. "This project does not represent us leaving, it represents us expanding."

Pieces of the puzzle

What they're saying:

Arlington Heights Mayor Jim Tinaglia penned a letter to community members on Tuesday regarding Warren's announcement.

"As we celebrated the kickoff to the 2025 Chicago Bears season last night, we also cheered for the progress made by the Village and the Bears in regards to the development of Arlington Park. Watching a national broadcast shine a spotlight on the Village of Arlington Heights was exciting, and we’re proud that our Village is the topic of many water cooler conversations this morning – from coast to coast and beyond.

"Village staff and officials have been hard at work with the Chicago Bears Football Club for many months to get to this point and are happy with the way this project is advancing. Our efforts will continue to move forward through a multi-tiered process that engages the community every step of the way. Prior to any approvals, residents and community members will be encouraged to provide their feedback, opinions, and input during neighborhood meetings that will be announced in the coming months. Plans for the site will also be publicly discussed by staff, Village commissions, and ultimately the Village Board. When neighborhood meetings are scheduled or plans related to the project are placed on a public meeting agenda, we will share social media posts, a press release, and will update www.vah.com/arlingtonpark with information on how to become part of the public process. As of today, traffic and economic studies are being reviewed and concepts for the property have been discussed, but formal plans have not yet moved forward into the approvals process.

"Our top priority remains ensuring that the project goes to its highest and best use and benefits the Arlington Heights community. Both the Village and the Chicago Bears want this development to reach its full potential and we’re happy to be working toward the same end-zone together," the letter reads. 

What's next:

The Bears are expected to present more on its plans for the stadium to Arlington Heights officials and residents in the coming weeks.

One of the big selling points is the Metra stop mere steps from the planned stadium site. Still, Tinaglia admitted there's a long way to go before any dirt can move.

"We don't have a site plan that has been presented, that is approvable," said Tinaglia. "we don't know exactly where the stadium is going to end up when it's all said and done, and we don't know about all of the other pieces of the puzzle that will be a part of this development."

Other pieces of the puzzle include how to move all that traffic off of Highway 53, and what about the train tracks that run across the north side of the site? The state will have to figure out a way to move tens of thousands of cars across them, via either a tunnel or an overpass. Then, construction crews can finally go to work.

"This is probably more than a decade worth of development and growth once it gets started. But initially there's probably certain pieces of puzzle that have to happen and want to happen right away," Tinaglia said.

The team estimates construction of a new stadium would create 56,000 construction jobs and 9,000 new permanent jobs. It will also result in $256 million in annual statewide new business and tourism.

Still, the mayor admitted that it's unlikely the Bears will get the favorable legislation they're looking for, even though it's something Warren said must happen.

"The Bears are not looking for something 0.000%," Tinaglia said. "They wanna pay their fair share and I respect them for that. We agree that they should get some sort of a understanding."