Bears to unveil conceptual plans for Arlington Heights stadium on Sept. 8
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The Chicago Bears will unveil the first potential plans for a new stadium in Arlington Heights next week.
The Bears will host an "informational community meeting" on Sept. 8 at John Hersey High School to discuss their plans to purchase and redevelop the former Arlington Park racetrack, and to unveil "conceptual plans for a transit-oriented mixed-use entertainment district anchored by a stadium that would be one of the largest development projects in Illinois state history," the team announced Thursday afternoon.
The meeting will be held at 7 p.m. in the Hersey High School gym at 1900 E. Thomas St. in Arlington Heights. Parking lots will open at 5 p.m. and doors will open at 5:30 p.m.
The Bears last year signed a purchase agreement for the Arlington International Racecourse property in Arlington Heights, and have been exploring plans for building a stadium there ever since.
The Bears have been playing at Soldier Field, which is owned by the Chicago Park District, since 1971. The most recent stadium renovation took place in 2003.
The stadium went through massive renovations nearly two decades ago at a cost of over $600 million. Even with the upgrade, Soldier Field still has a capacity of only 61,500, smallest in the NFL. There are 13 stadiums hold more than 70,000.
While the team has a lease at Soldier Field through 2033, they would have to pay the city only $84 million in damages if they were to break their lease in 2026, which would likely be the earliest they could expect to build and move into a new stadium in Arlington Heights.
Just the size of the Arlington Heights property -- at 326-acres, compared to the 17 acre park Soldier Field sits on -- makes it an attractive spot, along with easy access to a Metra stop and the expressway.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot has continued to hold out hope of keeping the Bears in Chicago, and in July she unveiled three options for renovating Soldier Field, including a possible dome over the lakefront arena.
The options include rebuilding both end zones and enclosing the stadium with a dome; renovating the stadium to make it dome ready; or modifying Soldier Filed into a multi-purpose stadium better suited for its other major sports tenant, the Chicago Fire FC, as well as concerts and other year-round events.
All three options would preserve the stadium's iconic colonnades, while expanding capacity from 61,500 seats to 70,000 seats.
According to the mayor's office, the plans also would increase the number of luxury suites from 133 to 140; add six new club areas; quadruple concessions areas from 50,000 to 200,000 square feet; expand the opportunity for stadium naming rights and other sponsorships, and create more flexible event space, with up to 4 separate venues, with capacity ranging from 5,000 to 60,000 seats.
The mayor's office estimated the costs of the three options would range from $900 million to $2.2 billion, but other than expanded naming rights, has yet to say how the city could fund the renovations.