Chicago Bears 2024
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blackdog
- Champaign
PARKING?????? Okay Boomer!
They would not own the stadium. They mentioned earlier that there would be parking under the old stadium, one reason to raise the grass to the colonnades.
Below are some quotes from a Crain's Chicago Business article. Mayor Johnson is not bright enough to realize he's getting fleeced.
"The Bears would provide $2.3 billion toward the $3.2 billion stadium costs under the plan. Public subsidies would make up the difference, and taxpayers would also be on the hook for $1.5 billion in infrastructure work that would be built over three phases."
"The $2.2 billion won’t come in the form of a check from the McCaskey family, but rather a complicated mix of loans and future revenue streams that can be borrowed against to begin construction. The bulk of the money will come from revenue raised through marketing opportunities at the new stadium, including corporate naming rights and two tranches of loans from the NFL. The team also hopes to raise hundreds of millions through the sale of personal seat licenses, or PSLs, to fans hoping to become season-ticket holders."
Mr. Tibbs
- southeast DuPage
there should be ZERO public money for this . The Bears should be treated the same as any other business or real estate project . Same for White Sox .
the owners of all these major pro sports teams have earned BILLIONS over the years . They need to put in cash equity or go to the bank/investment houses & institutions and borrow like we all have to do .
If they don’t like it , then leave .
the owners of all these major pro sports teams have earned BILLIONS over the years . They need to put in cash equity or go to the bank/investment houses & institutions and borrow like we all have to do .
If they don’t like it , then leave .
Agreed. If organizations don't want to spend their own money then they aren't really convinced that it is all that attractive of an option to begin with. I will say if someone is willing to spend $500,000 to build me a house and then hand me the keys PM me.
Has anyone seen the projected seating? Are they planning to still be the smallest stadium in the NFL?
I believe I heard the seating for the new stadium would be 70,000+. That'd put roughly in the middle of the league for capacity.
Mr. Tibbs
- southeast DuPage
I heard the same thing and supposedly there are ways to add about 4000-5000 seats for Super Bowl or CFP events . I guess they do that at Dallas & another venue
While generally I agree with your premise, it's worth mentioning here that the Bears tried to do that (the AH project), and the County acting on behalf of Chicago and its Mayor (remember that Johnson was Toni Preckwinkle's candidate) derailed that with their tax assessment shenanigans. Also, it seems fair that since the Bears will not own the land and that the City will own the property (including the stadium), that the City would contribute to it. You cannot have both ways: either let them move or help keep him here (by paying you fair share). I think the City will lose much more than $3B if the Bears were to leave.
The White Sox on the other hand can shove it and leave. They will not be missed and their departure will not impact the city that much, if at all.
Dallas did add a few thousand seatings for the SB. I think they also had two or three thousand more outside under a tent with a few jumbo screen tvs. It was cold and people were pretty miserable. I assumed Chicago would have the ability to add them inside the stadium if they hosted.
It only makes sense for Chicago to aim for 75,000. NY (NJ) and Dallas are both 80,000 + I don't get why LA is only a little more than 70,000. You would think all the major cities would want to be at 75,000 or more. There are only 8 or 9 home games. Plus pre and post seasons.
ChiefGritty
- Chicago, IL
As a Chicago taxpayer I have what I consider to be an incredibly generous and reasonable view on the expenditure of public money for the Bears and Sox.
That whole part of the city, from Roosevelt down to McCormick Place and from the lake to the river, has so many great assets and attracts so many people and has such enormous potential, I think the city should be eager to make it connect and flow in a way that makes it a hub of economic and cultural activity for the city. There are some major infrastructural challenges to doing that (a better route over the Metra tracks/LSD being #1), but if the Bears and Sox want to be partners and major investors in that vision for the South Loop area, I think a public-private coalition makes a lot of sense as something for the public sector to invest in.
But if we are talking about just stumping up public funds to plop luxury playgrounds for siphoning MLB and NFL revenues from the narrow parcels on which the ballparks sit? Not one red cent, period.
That whole part of the city, from Roosevelt down to McCormick Place and from the lake to the river, has so many great assets and attracts so many people and has such enormous potential, I think the city should be eager to make it connect and flow in a way that makes it a hub of economic and cultural activity for the city. There are some major infrastructural challenges to doing that (a better route over the Metra tracks/LSD being #1), but if the Bears and Sox want to be partners and major investors in that vision for the South Loop area, I think a public-private coalition makes a lot of sense as something for the public sector to invest in.
But if we are talking about just stumping up public funds to plop luxury playgrounds for siphoning MLB and NFL revenues from the narrow parcels on which the ballparks sit? Not one red cent, period.
I dare the Bears to leave Cook County. I triple dog dare them.
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