Arlington Heights issued a statement Monday hours after lawmakers ended their spring session with no decision on a stadium bill for the Bears, calling the lack of decision a “fumble.”
“The Village of Arlington Heights is disappointed that Springfield did not pass any legislation to facilitate the proposed redevelopment of Arlington Park this session. While this outcome is not what many had hoped for, the Arlington Park property remains one of the largest and most important redevelopment opportunities with long-term potential for our community, the region, and the entire State of Illinois,” the village said in a statement.
At around 4 a.m. Monday, the Illinois Senate voted 37-17 to approve a modified bill that would enable certain Cook County municipalities to create local stadium authorities. The House, however, did not take up a vote on the bill and the legislative session adjourned.
Mayor Jim Tinaglia said it was a “fumble for the state of Illinois.”
“Although we recognize that these discussions are complex and involve many stakeholders, this is clearly a fumble for the State of Illinois. My commitment to the residents and businesses of Arlington Heights is unwavering, and we will continue to represent the interests of our community as future opportunities and next steps are considered,” he said. “The Village remains committed to thoughtful planning, community engagement, and responsible evaluation and discussions of future redevelopment proposals with the Chicago Bears andstakeholders related to the Arlington Park property.”
In their statement Monday, the Bears said they are still considering Arlington Heights for their future stadium.
“We will finalize our evaluation of both Arlington Heights and Hammond, and remain on the late spring/early summer timeline that we have previously communicated,” the statement said. “We will provide an update when we have a decision to share.”
The Bears had long said such changes were an absolute must to construct a stadium in Arlington Heights, but many lawmakers on both sides of the political aisle raised significant concerns.
The negotiations come as Indiana offers the Bears up to $1 billion in incentives to relocate to a site in Hammond.
A special session could still be called in Illinois, but it was not immediately clear if or when that could happen.
“There’s a lot of work still ahead of us,” House Speaker Emmanuel “Chris” Welch said. “We’ll continue discussions on a number of issues, including our approach to the Bears stadium question, this summer.”
But the bar for finalizing an agreement for the Bears is now higher.
That’s because after the spring session the threshold for bill passage rises from a simple majority to a three-fifths majority under the Illinois Constitution. That would require 71 votes for a bill to pass in the House and 36 in the Senate.
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