On June 17th, 2021, the Chicago Bears placed a bid for Arlington Park Racecourse in hopes that it could become the future home of the Chicago Bears; however, five and a half years of uncertainty have raised major questions about the new stadium’s whereabouts. About a year and a half later in November 2022, the Bears released the plan for the stadium and surrounding amenities.
Almost two years after the bid was placed, the Bears announced that they would be open to options outside of Arlington Heights. The team statement was as follows, “However, the property’s original assessment at five times the 2021 tax value, and the recent settlement with Churchill Downs for 2022 being three times higher, fails to reflect the property is not operational and not commercially viable in its current state.”
After mayoral pitches from various Chicagoland suburbs, such as Naperville, Waukegan, Aurora, and Country Club Hills, an Indiana bill proposed the construction of a sports facility that the Bears could use. Considering the lower taxes and building costs of a state like Indiana, the idea sounds probable. Two weeks after the bill was proposed, however, the Bears stated that they were focusing on a metropolitan stadium.
Two years later, Indiana legislation formally passed Senate Bill 27, which details the fiscal means of the construction of a stadium. Having a professional sports team located in your state gains substantial revenue, thus causing Illinois to swindle the Bears into loyalty. Illinois legislation passed House Bill 910, which states that a property tax assessment hiatus will take place in the surrounding areas of the potential Arlington Heights location. This bill will need to be discussed further, however, as it only passed through the Revenue and Finance Committee.
Currently, the Bears have dedicated $2 billion to the potential construction of the Arlington Heights stadium. The total cost of the stadium is projected to be around $5 billion, so the remaining $3 billion would be sourced from various NFL loans and public funding. At the moment, they are looking for $855 million in public funding.
In September 2025, Bears president Kevin Warren stated that 56,000 jobs would be created for the construction of the stadium. This employment promise as well as the positive economic impact of the Bears’ presence causes Illinois to retain its relationship with the Bears.
