The Chicago Fire is breaking ground on a new, $750 million stadium in the South Loop Tuesday in an undeveloped area known as ‘The 78.’
“The team will now have a permanent place to call their own,” Team president Dave Baldwin told NBC Chicago, of the milestone.
According to Baldwin, the team has played in Naperville, Bridgeview and Soldier Field. The Fire moved out of SeatGeek Stadium in suburban Bridgeview after the 2019 season, returning to Soldier Field since the beginning of 2020. Soldier Field had been the team’s home for the first four years of its existence, but then the club began bouncing between venues before settling in at SeatGeek Stadium in 2006.
“While we love playing at Soldier Field, it’s built for an NFL team,” Baldwin said. “You need to be in the city of Chicago to deliver for our fans.”
The stadium will be financed by club owner and Chicago native Joe Mansueto, Baldwin said. It will serve as the anchor for “The 78,” a name for the city’s unofficial 78th community area near the city’s central business district.
“We fell in love with ‘The 78,'” Baldwin said, as the Mansueto searched for a new home for the team. Baldwin added the area has “amazing” public transportation, near the CTA’s orange, red and green lines.
The groundbreaking Tuesday morning is phase one of an $8 billion project, with the new “world class” Chicago Fire stadium as the anchor. Baldwin said the area hopes to host up to 45 major events every year, along with dozens of smaller ones.
“When completed, The 78 will be a vibrant, year-round destination featuring a bustling riverfront dedicated to recreation, dining and culture and connected to the city’s famed Riverwalk,” a site for the The 78 said. “Chicagoans and visitors alike will be drawn to this easily navigable new community that will connect to the neighborhoods around it: South Loop, Chinatown, Bronzeville, Bridgeport, UIC/Little Italy and Pilsen. Whatever draws people to The 78- whether they come to live, work or play- they’ll be welcomed by a neighborhood that stands out even as it fits right in.”
According to Baldwin, the Fire’s stadium will be the “most expensive stadium ever built in MLS history.” It’s expected to open in 2028.
According to officials, the groundbreaking is set for 2 p.m., with Mayor Brandon Johnson scheduled to attend.
Where is The 78?
The soon-to-be developed Chicago neighborhood, in the South Loop, sits on Roosevelt along the Chicago River. The name for the new neighborhood, “The 78,” was given its name to reference Chicago’s 77 officially defined “community areas.”
The area would feature considerable public transit access, according to developer Related Midwest with three CTA lines stopping right at Roosevelt and State Street, just a couple of blocks east of the property: the Red, Green and Orange Lines.
“Set along an unprecedented half-mile of riverfront, The 78 is 62 acres framed by Roosevelt Road, Clark Street, Chinatown’s Ping Tom Park and the Chicago River,” the website said. . “From this site will rise Chicago’s most connected, progressive, forward-thinking neighborhood – ever.”
Plans for the mixed-use, $8 billion neighborhood include seven acres of green space, a five-acre sports part, entertainment, retail, housing, dining and more, the site showed.
The area for The 78 was originally created from a landfill project to straighten the South Branch of the Chicago River that ran from the 1910s to the 1920s. At this time, the space was used as a rail yard. According to “The 78”’s development website, in the 1970s the rail lines were removed and the space was vacant by 1977.
Former Chicago mover and shaker Tony Rezko bought the land in 2001 and had plans for mixed-use development, but those plans never went anywhere. Development group Related Midwest bought the property in 2016.
What neighbors are saying
Not everyone is on board with the development.
Monday, a group of concerned residents spoke out about the stadium, arguing that more community input is needed before the project proceeds.
“Members of this coalition were not invited to the groundbreaking. They certainly heard from us about the importance of including community voices,” said Grace Chan McKibben, Executive Director of Coalition for a Better Chinese-American Community.
Activists say the project has plenty of appeal to developers, but community members have felt their concerns haven’t been listened to.
“It’s for rich people. It’s a playground for developers, for the soccer team to bring up their yachts and come see a soccer game,” said Sarah Tang, Director for Programs for Coalition for a Better Chinese American Community.
Community leaders are demanding a Community Benefits Agreement from the Fire and city officials before construction gets underway.
“This Community Benefits Agreement will include housing, jobs, transportation, which is important to all the communities,” said Chan McKibben. “Not just Chinatown, all the surrounding communities including Bronzeville, Pilsen, and more.”
The community leaders also raised concerns about public transit access to the site of the stadium, arguing the team hasn’t adequately prepared for that accessibility.
“As the plan stands today, there will be zero changes to the existing public transportation infrastructure. No new bus, no added service, no El-stop,” Tang said.
Community members want a new CTA rail station south of the stadium, which is planned to hold 22,000 fans for games and even more for concerts.
“Not only would a Chinatown South Loop Orange Line station help alleviate these pressures, it would also create new connections from the South Loop to Midway Airport,” said Kate Eakin, Executive Director of McKinley Park Development Council.
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