Chicago Mayor Fights to Keep Bears in the City Amid Stadium Shift

So, here’s the deal: Mayor Brandon Johnson is still holding onto hope that the Chicago Bears will stick around. He made it clear on Tuesday that he’s done his part to keep the team in the Windy City.

Recently, the Bears’ leadership dropped a bit of a bombshell, telling the mayor’s office that they’re shifting their focus back to that huge Arlington Heights property they snagged in 2023. This means they’re kinda backing away from that controversial idea of building a new stadium right on the lakefront, which was supposed to keep them in Chicago.

Johnson’s been pretty vocal about the whole situation, pointing fingers at the lack of state funding as a major reason for the Bears’ decision. He said, “The question is will the state use the dollars that are designed for stadiums to be built? That’s a decision that they’ll have to make, and if they’re not committed to doing that, then the Bears will have to make other considerations. The doors remain open and there’s a long way to go still here.”

Now, Illinois Governor JB Pritzker isn’t exactly on board with the Bears’ plans either. He’s been pretty skeptical about the idea of using state funds for a new stadium. Last spring, he called the proposal for a domed, taxpayer-funded stadium just south of Soldier Field a “non-starter.” This plan included a whopping $900 million in public funds for upfront costs, plus an additional $1.5 billion for infrastructure improvements around the stadium. Yikes!

Pritzker said, “I remain skeptical about this proposal, and I wonder whether it’s a good deal for the taxpayers. It’s very important to me that, with all that the state needs to accomplish, we think about what the priorities are of the state.”

And it doesn’t stop there. Back in February, State Rep. Bob Morgan (D-Deerfield) threw a curveball by proposing legislation that would tie any public financing for professional sports stadiums to how well the teams perform. Both the Bears and the Chicago White Sox are looking for some public cash to help fund their new stadiums, so this could get interesting.

In the midst of all this, it’s clear that the Bears’ future in Chicago is still up in the air. Mayor Johnson is trying to keep the conversation going, but with the team’s eyes on Arlington Heights, it’s anyone’s guess where they’ll end up.