Latest news with #KevinWarren
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Chicago Bears call on state legislature to pass bill and provide momentum for suburban stadium
LAKE FOREST, Ill. (AP) — Chicago Bears president Kevin Warren said Friday the team requires a big push from the state legislature to reach its goal of digging for a new stadium in Arlington Heights sometime this year. The Bears have the plans drawn up for the indoor stadium but need a mega bill to pass in Springfield in October to supply momentum for the construction. 'The biggest item that remains, that has remained, is the fact that this mega project build that was on the docket in the spring but was not put forth for a vote, but it is very, very important that it passes,' Warren said. 'Because without that legislation, we are not able to proceed forward. 'We stand ready. The stadium is designed.' Warren said team officials have been meeting with Arlington Heights village Mayor Jim Tinaglia on the project, which is their only target site. Over three years they fluctuated from Arlington Heights to Chicago and now back to Arlington Heights. The bill the Bears want to see passed would freeze property taxes for large-scale construction projects like the stadium. Warren maintains the bill could create 56,000 jobs during construction and 9,000 permanent jobs. 'So, if that bill passes in October there are items we have to work on and obviously there is a process you have to follow with the village of Arlington Heights from an approval process,' Warren said. 'But obviously they are committed. 'The goal would still be to be in a position to move dirt this year. There's still work, some initial work that needs to be done to get the site ready, but to hopefully break ground next year formally but to actually move dirt this year.' Warren has said it would take three years for the stadium to be built once ground is broken. The Bears are devoting about $2.7 billion to the project on their own property at the old Arlington International Racecourse. Bears owner George McCaskey said he hasn't become frustrated with the political process of getting the stadium built. 'These things take time,' McCaskey said. 'It's on us to convince the governor and the state legislators that this is a good idea for the people of Illinois and we need to do a better job at that.' ___ AP NFL:
Washington Post
2 days ago
- Politics
- Washington Post
Chicago Bears call on state legislature to pass bill and provide momentum for suburban stadium
LAKE FOREST, Ill. — Chicago Bears president Kevin Warren said Friday the team requires a big push from the state legislature to reach its goal of digging for a new stadium in Arlington Heights sometime this year. The Bears have the plans drawn up for the indoor stadium but need a mega bill to pass in Springfield in October to supply momentum for the construction.
Associated Press
2 days ago
- Business
- Associated Press
Chicago Bears call on state legislature to pass bill and provide momentum for suburban stadium
LAKE FOREST, Ill. (AP) — Chicago Bears president Kevin Warren said Friday the team requires a big push from the state legislature to reach its goal of digging for a new stadium in Arlington Heights sometime this year. The Bears have the plans drawn up for the indoor stadium but need a mega bill to pass in Springfield in October to supply momentum for the construction. 'The biggest item that remains, that has remained, is the fact that this mega project build that was on the docket in the spring but was not put forth for a vote, but it is very, very important that it passes,' Warren said. 'Because without that legislation, we are not able to proceed forward. 'We stand ready. The stadium is designed.' Warren said team officials have been meeting with Arlington Heights village Mayor Jim Tinaglia on the project, which is their only target site. Over three years they fluctuated from Arlington Heights to Chicago and now back to Arlington Heights. The bill the Bears want to see passed would freeze property taxes for large-scale construction projects like the stadium. Warren maintains the bill could create 56,000 jobs during construction and 9,000 permanent jobs. 'So, if that bill passes in October there are items we have to work on and obviously there is a process you have to follow with the village of Arlington Heights from an approval process,' Warren said. 'But obviously they are committed. 'The goal would still be to be in a position to move dirt this year. There's still work, some initial work that needs to be done to get the site ready, but to hopefully break ground next year formally but to actually move dirt this year.' Warren has said it would take three years for the stadium to be built once ground is broken. The Bears are devoting about $2.7 billion to the project on their own property at the old Arlington International Racecourse. Bears owner George McCaskey said he hasn't become frustrated with the political process of getting the stadium built. 'These things take time,' McCaskey said. 'It's on us to convince the governor and the state legislators that this is a good idea for the people of Illinois and we need to do a better job at that.' ___ AP NFL:
New York Times
2 days ago
- Business
- New York Times
Chicago Bears still ‘extremely focused' on Arlington Heights for site of new stadium
LAKE FOREST, Ill. — Chicago Bears president/CEO Kevin Warren said Friday that the franchise remains 'extremely focused' on Arlington Heights as the site of a future new stadium. 'We strongly believe that is the only location in Cook County that will allow us to build a stadium, a new Chicago Bears stadium with a fixed roof,' Warren said at Halas Hall. 'We are making great progress.' Advertisement Warren said the team is having weekly meetings with the Village of Arlington Heights. The Bears hoped that the 'mega project' bill would pass in May, but it didn't even get to a vote. Next up would be a potential October vote. 'It is very, very important that it passes,' Warren said. 'Because without that legislation, we are not able to proceed forward.' The bill would provide property tax certainty for companies that back a 'mega project' in the state. 'There's been some conversation that people have said this is a Chicago Bears bill,' Warren said. 'Would the Bears benefit from this mega project, property tax bill, from a property tax standpoint? Absolutely. But this is a jobs bill. The climate that we are in, from an economic standpoint locally but also from a national standpoint, especially here in the state of Illinois, people need to be put to work. You're talking about this stadium project that would create over 56,000 construction jobs, 9,100 permanent jobs.' Warren said if the bill were to pass in October, that the goal would be 'to move dirt this year' and then 'hopefully break ground next year.' He said the stadium design is done. 'This is a world-class facility for a world-class fan base. Chicagoland deserves it,' chairman George McCaskey said. 'We're missing out on major events. It's a great opportunity to provide jobs both on a temporary basis and permanent basis, and it's a chance to attract major events to the greatest city in the world. The village of Arlington Heights would benefit. The city of Chicago would benefit. The county of Cook would benefit. And the great state of Illinois would benefit.' The team first publicly shifted focus back to Arlington Heights in early April at the league meetings, following a year of trying to get a new stadium started in downtown Chicago on the Museum Campus near the Bears' permanent home since 1971, Soldier Field. Advertisement The Bears signed an agreement to purchase the 326 acres in Arlington Heights in Sept. 2021. The next fall, they presented plans at Hersey High School for a stadium and surrounding infrastructure. They closed on the land in early 2023 before putting their focus on Chicago in 2024. Warren didn't necessarily provide any new information since we heard from the Bears in April, other than to confirm the team's commitment to Arlington Heights and nowhere else. It also provided him with an opportunity to state the team's case for the mega project bill. Meanwhile, McCaskey would not go into details about a report from Sportico that his family and the Ryan family agreed to share the two percent stake in the team held by the late Andrew McKenna. McCaskey did say, 'The important thing, as far as we're concerned, the thing that Bears fans might have on their minds, might be concerned about, is that the Halas-McCaskey family was, is, and will remain what the NFL calls 'the controlling owner' of the team.' McCaskey did confirm that Edwards L. McCaskey, his nephew, has taken the vacant board seat held by Virginia McCaskey, the team's matriarch, who died in February. 'I told him, you have big shoes to fill, kid,' McCaskey said. 'He's been fantastic so far. He's bright. He's articulate. He asks great questions. He's eager to learn. And it's exciting to have the next generation of our family on the board.' McCaskey reiterated what he said in April about the plan for ownership moving forward. 'We're together,' he said. 'I said then — she gave us the game plan, she coached us up, and we need to execute the game plan. Our goal is to remain owners of the Bears, my brother Pat says, until the second coming. I say another 100 years. Either of those would be great. But we've gotta stick together, that's the important thing.' (Top photo of Bears helmet by Nick Cammett / Getty Images) Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Play today's puzzle
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Kevin Warren says Bears are 'extremely focused' on building stadium in Arlington Heights
The Chicago Bears are in the market for a new stadium, and team president/CEO Kevin Warren shared a stadium update on Friday. Warren said the Bears remain "extremely focused" on building a stadium in Arlington Heights, the 326-acre property the organization bought in 2023 for nearly $200 million, and he said the organization is making great progress. The Bears are only considering Arlington Heights in Cook County, per Warren, and they are having weekly meetings with their leaders. 'We are still extremely focused on Arlington Heights," Warren said Friday. "…Plan is still to proceed forward this year.' The biggest thing standing in the way of the Bears breaking ground is a Mega Projects bill that remains on the docket. If it passes, Warren said the team is prepared to start construction immediately. Still, the goal is "to move dirt this year" and Warren is confident they'll be able to break ground in 2025. As for why the Bears won't be building in Chicago? Warren said finances didn't make sense for them to build a new stadium on the lakefront. This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Bears are 'extremely focused' on building stadium in Arlington Heights
