More stadium talk: Warren talks Arlington Heights ‘stalemate,’ Lake Forest in the mix

Chicago Bears president and CEO Kevin Warren spoke Monday at a community meeting with the group supporting the team’s efforts to build a new stadium in Arlington Heights.

At the meeting, Warren gave an update on the negotiations with the city over the assessment of the former Arlington International Racecourse and the school districts over rates they would receive.

It was not good.

From Crain’s Chicago Business:

“We’ve had a stalemate and a lack of communication – and it sounds like it’s a little more convoluted at this point in time than I thought it would be. Well then, we’re in position to start exploring other places and other opportunities.”

In the Daily Herald’s report of the event, they got more into the numbers.

The Bears and three school districts — Palatine Township Elementary District 15, Northwest Suburban High School District 214 and Palatine-Schaumburg High School District 211, whose boundaries cover portions of the sprawling shuttered racetrack property — are far apart on what the tax payment should be the next two years.

The Bears’ last offer was $4.3 million, while the schools suggested $7.9 million. Though it’s being challenged, Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi’s reassessment of the property would increase the annual property tax bill from $2.8 million to $16.2 million.

The other interesting tidbit to come out of the meeting was that offers from other communities continue to roll in. According to Warren, that includes Lake Forest, which is already home to the Bears’ current team facilities.

Warren said that the Lake Forest officials called him on Monday while he was en route to the event in Arlington Heights.

Lake Forest, for those that may not have grown up in the area, is among the wealthiest suburbs in all of Chicagoland. How much open land they have or where they’re proposing a possible site, remains to be seen.

Stay tuned to WCG for the latest on the Bears stadium deal.

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