{"id":30893,"date":"2026-02-17T14:09:45","date_gmt":"2026-02-17T20:09:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thexradio.com\/news\/?p=30893"},"modified":"2026-02-17T14:09:45","modified_gmt":"2026-02-17T20:09:45","slug":"bears-stadium-package-has-positive-momentum-in-springfield-but-not-yet-in-end-zone","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thexradio.com\/news\/sports\/football\/30893-bears-stadium-package-has-positive-momentum-in-springfield-but-not-yet-in-end-zone\/","title":{"rendered":"Bears Stadium Package Has &#8220;Positive Momentum&#8221; in Springfield, but Not Yet in End Zone"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"pdfprnt-buttons pdfprnt-buttons-post pdfprnt-top-right\"><a href=\"javascript: window.print()\" class=\"pdfprnt-button pdfprnt-button-print\" target=\"_self\" ><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.thexradio.com\/news\/wp-content\/plugins\/pdf-print\/images\/print.png\" alt=\"image_print\" title=\"Print Content\" \/><span class=\"pdfprnt-button-title pdfprnt-button-print-title\">Print<\/span><\/a><\/div><p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Illinois lawmakers say progress has been made, but hurdles remain<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">By BRENDEN MOORE<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Capitol News Illinois\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><a href=\"mailto:bmoore@capitolnewsillinois.com\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">bmoore@capitolnewsillinois.com<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Article Summary<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Illinois lawmakers say a long-stalled proposal to help the Chicago Bears build a domed stadium in Arlington Heights is gaining \u201cpositive momentum,\u201d as negotiations intensify over a bill that would freeze the team\u2019s property tax assessment for up to 40 years and provide more than $850 million in infrastructure support.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The renewed urgency comes as Indiana advances competing legislation backed by Gov. Mike Braun to lure the team across state lines, raising the stakes in Springfield.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Even with new momentum, the plan faces steep political math: Chicago legislators are wary of helping the team leave Soldier Field, where millions in renovation debt remain and the Bears\u2019 lease runs through 2033.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This summary was written by the reporters and editors who worked on this story.<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">SPRINGFIELD \u2014 Legislation that would assist the Chicago Bears\u2019 stalled effort to move from the lakefront to a new domed stadium in Arlington Heights has \u201cpositive momentum\u201d after languishing for years at the bottom of Springfield\u2019s priority list.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But the emerging package hasn\u2019t reached the end zone, lawmakers involved in negotiations say, as key details \u2014 including concessions necessary to win enough votes among Chicago legislators \u2014 are still being worked out behind the scenes.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cYou can&#8217;t score a touchdown unless you&#8217;re first in the huddle, right? And we&#8217;re in the huddle now,\u201d state Rep. Kam Buckner, D-Chicago, told Capitol News Illinois. \u201cWe&#8217;re calling plays and we&#8217;re figuring out what&#8217;s going to work, and then we&#8217;ll break at some point and try to execute.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The renewed push comes as Hoosier legislators work this week to meet a key deadline on a competing package meant to entice the Bears over the state line.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Indiana legislation creating a stadium authority like the Illinois Sports Facilities Authority, which owns Rate Field and issued bonds to pay for Soldier Field renovations, passed that state\u2019s Senate last month and faces a deadline to pass out of a House committee this week. Indiana\u2019s legislature is scheduled to adjourn Feb. 27.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As the bill progresses in Indiana, Illinois leaders have shown new urgency.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Gov. JB Pritzker\u2019s office has convened discussions among the team, lawmakers, local officials and other stakeholders around a package that could include tax measures and more than $850 million in infrastructure commitments long sought by the Bears.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As of this week, it\u2019s been three years since the team closed on the purchase of the 326-acre former Arlington Park site for nearly $200 million. While the former racetrack has been razed, the promised \u201cshovels in the ground\u201d on a new stadium have yet to manifest.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>PILOT bill takes off<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To build their long-desired suburban football palace, the team has insisted on legislation that would provide long-term tax certainty \u2014 and likely result in the team paying a smaller bill than under Illinois\u2019 existing arcane property tax system.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ilga.gov\/documents\/legislation\/104\/HB\/PDF\/10400HB2789lv.pdf\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">House Bill 2789<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u2014 the so-called megaprojects bill \u2014 would freeze the Bears\u2019 property tax assessment and allow the organization to negotiate a payment-in-lieu-of-taxes with local taxing bodies for up to forty years. The team said this will offer tax certainty necessary before committing billions of dollars to the project.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The bill was recently kicked out of the gatekeeping House Rules committee to the House Revenue Committee, which has a hearing scheduled for Thursday morning. But it remains unclear if the bill will be called while negotiations continue.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cThere have been really great conversations almost daily,\u201d state Rep. Mary Beth Canty, D-Arlington Heights, the bill\u2019s sponsor, told Capitol News Illinois last week. \u201cI&#8217;ve been involved in a number of those. We&#8217;ve got key stakeholders from the legislature involved and the Bears&#8217; and the governor&#8217;s team, so I think we&#8217;re headed in the right direction.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Indiana Bears?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The payment-in-lieu-of-taxes languished. What\u2019s changed?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Indiana\u2019s entry into the fray, for one.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.chicagobears.com\/news\/an-open-letter-from-president-ceo-kevin-warren-regarding-the-chicago-bears-stadium-project\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In an open letter to fans in December<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, Bears President Kevin Warren said the team would expand its search for a new home, including to Northwest Indiana, after their efforts to land in Arlington Heights were \u201cmet with no legislative partnership\u201d in Springfield.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Indiana Gov. Mike Braun quickly announced his support for luring the Bears to The Region and state lawmakers began <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/indianacapitalchronicle.com\/2026\/02\/13\/indiana-deadline-approaching-for-possible-bears-stadium-deal\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">crafting legislation creating a state stadium authority<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> with the power to acquire land, issue long-term bonds and finance the construction of a stadium and related facilities. The Bears have eyed a site near Wolf Lake in Hammond while Gary, Portage and other cities have pitched their own proposals.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cIt just raised the priority to get something done,\u201d state Sen. Mark Walker, D-Arlington Heights, said of Indiana\u2019s maneuvering. \u201cSo yeah, it was a lever in that sense.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But even as Hoosier legislators make their own play to intercept the Bears, Illinois lawmakers won\u2019t be rushed as they run through their call sheet.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cWe obviously don&#8217;t want to see the Bears move to Indiana, but at the same time, we&#8217;re not going to get into a bidding war using taxpayer dollars,\u201d state Sen. Bill Cunningham, D-Chicago, said. \u201cWe&#8217;re just not going to do that.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Asked earlier this month if he thought the Bears were serious about moving to Indiana, Pritzker \u2014 a noted card player \u2014 said he \u201cnever take(s) anything as if it&#8217;s a bluff.\u201d But, he reiterated that his office has been in \u201cconsistent conversation\u201d with the team for upwards of two years.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The governor met with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell twice in January to discuss the matter, according to Pritzker\u2019s calendar, obtained by CNI via a public records request.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Let\u2019s make a deal<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Players in Springfield say there\u2019s a nonzero chance the Bears leave for Northwest Indiana, and acknowledge that the possibility helped kickstart discussions.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Other factors have also helped move once-nonexistent negotiations along.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It was hard to pin the Bears down on details, lawmakers said, as the team focused first on a privately funded Arlington Heights stadium before shifting to a lakefront stadium that\u2019d require some public funding and then back to Arlington Heights. But that\u2019s changed, Buckner said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cThis is a \u2018devil is in the details\u2019 situation,\u201d Buckner said. \u201cAnd we didn&#8217;t have any of the details, right? I think in the early days, the Bears expected for us just to say \u2018yes,\u2019 without any specificity.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Progress has been made on the Bears\u2019 infrastructure requests \u2014 an aspect of the project to which state leaders have always signaled openness.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And the fine details are being worked through on the PILOT legislation. Though cautioning that no final deal has been struck, Cunningham said the property tax break would likely be narrowed in scope, applying to the stadium and closely related features, such as a team hall of fame, but not to an adjacent entertainment district or mixed-use development planned for the massive site.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>The Chicago factor<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But there remains a major obstacle: getting enough Chicago legislators to vote for a bill that makes it easier for the team to leave the city, especially with more than a half-billion dollars remaining to be paid on the bonds that financed the renovation of Soldier Field in 2003. The Bears\u2019 lease at the Chicago Park District-owned facility runs through 2033.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">More than three dozen state lawmakers have Chicago addresses, nearly all of them Democrats. And House Speaker Chris Welch, D-Hillside, has an unofficial role that no bill will receive a floor vote unless it has at least 60 Democratic votes.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Bears are not there yet, though they\u2019ve shown a willingness to address this basic math problem, Cunningham said.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cThe question is, can they do it in a way that satisfies enough Chicago legislators to get them to vote for the bill? And that&#8217;s something that&#8217;s just hard to determine right now,\u201d Cunningham said. \u201cThat&#8217;s, I think, one of the reasons why it&#8217;s difficult to imagine a bill under any kind of circumstances moving forward in February. There&#8217;s just a lot more to do there.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If the Bears break their lease at Soldier Field, they will have to pay a penalty. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.chicagotribune.com\/2021\/07\/02\/cost-to-bears-for-breaking-soldier-field-lease-peanuts-compared-with-the-price-tag-for-a-new-stadium-in-the-suburbs\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A Chicago Tribune review of the team\u2019s lease<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> in 2021 found that they\u2019d owe $84 million if they left in 2026. If they left in 2029, it would be closer to $55 million, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/chicago.suntimes.com\/metro-state\/2021\/9\/29\/22700824\/bears-soldier-field-lease-penalty-arlington-heights-new-stadium-racecourse-property\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">the Sun-Times reported<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But in separate interviews, Buckner and Cunningham brought up the Cleveland Browns, who are similarly bolting a publicly owned lakefront stadium in downtown Cleveland for a new domed stadium in the suburbs. After some legal skirmishes, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cleveland.com\/news\/2025\/12\/cleveland-council-oks-reworked-100m-browns-deal-that-greenlights-brook-park-move.html\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">the team agreed to pay the city of Cleveland $100 million<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, including costs of stadium demolition.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cNot saying that we should use that as a litmus test, but it&#8217;s hard not to pay attention to that,\u201d Buckner said, noting that Cleveland is a far smaller market than Chicago.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cThe Bears do not have an obligation\u201d to help pay the debt, said Buckner, whose legislative district includes Soldier Field. \u201cI&#8217;ve always said it&#8217;s not a contractual obligation, but it&#8217;s an obligation of context because there would be no Soldier Field renovation without them demanding one. So we can&#8217;t undo the past, but I think we can stabilize the future.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Lawmakers are in the huddle. But what yard line are they on?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cThat remains to be seen,\u201d Buckner said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/capitolnewsillinois.com\/\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Capitol News Illinois<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news service that distributes state government coverage to hundreds of news outlets statewide. It is funded primarily by the Illinois Press Foundation and the Robert R. McCormick Foundation.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Illinois lawmakers say progress has been made, but hurdles remain By BRENDEN MOORE Capitol News Illinois\u00a0 bmoore@capitolnewsillinois.com\u00a0\u00a0 Article Summary\u00a0\u00a0 Illinois lawmakers say a long-stalled proposal to help the Chicago Bears [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-30893","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-football"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Bears Stadium Package Has &quot;Positive Momentum&quot; in Springfield, but Not Yet in End Zone - Effingham&#039;s News and Sports Leader, 979XFM and KJ Country 102.3<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Effingham&#039;s News and Sports Leader\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thexradio.com\/news\/sports\/football\/30893-bears-stadium-package-has-positive-momentum-in-springfield-but-not-yet-in-end-zone\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Bears Stadium Package Has &quot;Positive Momentum&quot; 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