Friends the Parks Pushing Back on Bears’ Stadium Proposal

The Chicago Bears are ready to square off in the legal gridiron so the team can move forward on building a $3.2 billion lakefront stadium to anchor a surrounding mixed-use development.

The Bears’ plan calls for more than $1 billion in public subsidies, but advocacy group Friends of the Parks is gearing up for a legal battle to protect the public lakefront space, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.

“We are prepared to fight,” the group’s acting executive director, Gin Kilgore, told the outlet. “We are prepared to stand on behalf of the doctrines, the principles that say our lakefront should be forever open, clear and free for public use.”

Despite the group’s readiness to contest the proposal, Kilgore emphasized that litigation won’t be its immediate course of action.

Friends of the Parks has raised many concerns about the stadium development, notably its funding structure. The plan heavily relies on $1.5 billion in stadium infrastructure projects, with only the initial phase, budgeted at $325 million for road improvements, guaranteed. The subsequent phases hinge on securing state and federal funds, raising doubts about its financial viability.

Moreover, the proposed lease terms for the new stadium have drawn scrutiny. The Bears’ insistence on retaining revenue from non-football events held at the stadium, including concerts and other entertainment spectacles, has not been well received by government officials, including Gov. J.B. Pritzker, who labeled certain aspects of the proposal as “non-starters.”

The potential ramifications of diverting resources away from the Chicago Park District, which heavily relies on revenue generated by nearby Soldier Field, are also a point of contention. Kilgore questioned the impact on local parks and the absence of detailed plans for reinvestment in community spaces.

The team’s President Kevin Warren recently downplayed the likelihood of legal obstacles impeding the project given that a lakefront stadium has existed for 100 years.

Kilgore sees it differently.

“The Public Trust Doctrine is not just about what we have or build on the lakefront,” she said. It’s about who it’s for, how it’s used, how it’s accessed. Everything about this is different.”

—Quinn Donoghue