The subject of the possibility of a new stadium for the Chicago Bears came up again this week.
Despite what even the highest-ranking official in their front office says, I wonder if I will see it in my lifetime.
The story resurfaced last week when President and CEO Kevin Warren was asked about it in a media gathering in London in advance of the team’s game in London Sunday.
Warren was asked about the status of the proposed new stadium adjacent to the current Soldier Field along the lake front.
"The status is we're continuing to make progress,” Warren said. “We have a plan.” That plan includes a timeline of breaking ground in 2025.
For those of you not aware, that’s next year. Presumably they would put shovels in the ground in April.
But it’s the Bears we are talking about, so there is always something that makes what seems like a foregone conclusion anything but that.
Actually, it’s a several somethings.
Where to start? Hmmm…how about the fact that the Bears bought the old Arlington Park horse racing facility in February of last year for $197.2 million.
They bought that land and spent money to tear down the grandstand on the old home stretch with the purpose of building an enclosed football stadium with a roof that retracts when the weather is favorable.
That stadium would be surrounded by restaurants and shopping areas that would make the area a place that people would come to all year round.
But now, in their own words, they are turning their full and undivided attention to what is being called the Burnham Harbor Project. If you have ever been to Chicago and driven along Lakeshore Drive and noticed the sailboats in the water just south of Soldier Field—that’s where the Bears are looking at building their new facility…well, on the land next to it anyway.
According to this plan, the structure would have a roofed stadium that would be built for versatility. It could host events like Final Fours and the Super Bowl.
So what could be so wrong with that?
Well, the Bears don’t own that land—the city of Chicago does.
The city actually owns and maintains Soldier Field, which is why city leadership so desperately wants the Bears to stay at Soldier Field. Remember, when Soldier Field underwent a massive renovation to its current seating configuration, that bill landed on the mayor’s desk, and they are still paying off that debt.
Soldier Field is considered part of the parks department.
Which leads to a whole new set of problems.
There is a group there called Friends of the Parks that would best be described as a watchdog group, whose stated goal in to “inspire, equip, and mobilize a diverse Chicago to ensure an equitable park system for a healthy Chicago.”
That’s a very noble goal and they should be commended for their effort.
But if you were going to write a mission statement about who they are and what they are about, it would say (in a Chicago accent) “you mess with the parks, you mess with us.”
Others have tried to build things in this exact spot. For example, George Lucas thought it was a lovely sight for a Star Wars museum.
Friends of the Parks fought it until Lucas gave up and built it in Los Angeles instead.
These people might be older and feebler, but they fight to win and they sure aren’t scared of the Monsters of the Midway.
FOTP have rallied nearly 30 activist organizations in Chicagoland against the Bears plan. That includes environmental groups opposed to development so close to the waters of Lake Michigan, a group that wants to keep the area open for all Chicagoans and people who come to visit and not become “a playground for the rich,” and groups opposed to tax dollars being used to help fund the project.
So, it’s fair to say that a large share of the city of Chicago hates the concept of the Bears building a new stadium to varying degrees.
Time to speak truth.
The Bears need a new stadium because the renovations to the existing one didn’t scratch the surface of the problems it has had.
It doesn’t do anything about traffic flow. It didn’t do anything about parking. It actually made attending games worse by reducing the seating capacity to 61,500—the smallest stadium in the NFL.
Oh, and the playing surface is an embarrassment, but field turf seems too salty for the parks department budget.
But no one seems to trust the Bears to get this right, and that’s a very fair feeling to have.
Look, they haven’t been able to get their quarterback right for 40 years, should we think they will make a stadium work?