NEWSLETTER
Even as the Chicago Bears flirt with other suburbs who have an interest in being the team’s future home, it still feels inevitable that Arlington Heights will ultimately be that site.
After all, the Bears just paid more than $197 million to buy the Arlington Park property with the idea of turning it into a football and social megaplex. One step toward making that happen is tearing down the former horse-racing track. And it so happens that the process is continuing today with exterior demolition getting underway:
In a statement released before Friday’s demolition, the Bears reiterated that the team going through this demolition process doesn’t mean the property will be developed into a stadium and entertainment complex. And yet, it is such an important step toward developing the pretty into a stadium and entertainment complex. Go figure.
Earlier in the month, the Bears said their Arlington Park stadium plans were in jeopardy thanks in part to a property tax issue. Since then, team representatives have met with the mayors of Naperville and Chicago. Plus, we’ve seen suburban Waukegan also throw its hat in the ring showing interest. Could this all be part of a larger play by the team in an attempt to muscle Arlington Heights into the tax breaks it wants? Sure. It might even turn out to be effective, too. We’ll continue keeping tabs on this story as it develops. I don’t imagine we’re out of the woods just yet.
I’m not sure where it goes from here. Knowing what we know about the Bears, we should know better than to expect a straight and narrow path. Hence, making this journey a fun ride to follow. And we’ll be following it to its conclusion. But also … how about some more demolition videos? Maybe it’s the kid in me. But I can’t get enough visuals of tearing stuff down.
