Chicago Bears Deliver Video Render Of New Stadium And It’s Incredible

The Chicago Bears made the curious decision to unveil their new plans for a lakefront domed stadium 24 hours before the draft. Some felt it was a dodgy attempt to avoid too much media attention because there would be backlash. However, it appears team president Kevin Warren, chairman George McCaskey, and Chicago mayor Brandon Johnson knew what they were doing. The plan for this new project is extensive and appears highly detailed. The Bears have big plans for this future property including year-round activities for patrons, football games, soccer games, college basketball, and more.

Johnson was front and center, answering questions about what to expect regarding funding the stadium. He made it crystal clear there would be no new taxes or raising taxes in the efforts to build it. The Bears will contribute $2 billion of their own money, including assistance from the NFL itself. This is undoubtedly a relief for many people in the city who feared more money getting drained from their pockets.

Once that was done, the Bears delivered the knockout blow with a video rendering of what the stadium and property would look like once completed. Needless to say, it’s breathtaking.

The Chicago Bears have plenty of hurdles ahead.

While there won’t be any new taxes for the stadium, it still needs help from public funding. Estimates say it will take around $900 million. The Bears and NFL will handle the rest, which is around 72%. They’d do this by extending the Illinois Sports Facilities Authority bonds that were used to fund Soldier Field’s renovation for another 40 years. One reason the team is moving so fast on this is knowing the cost for such a project will keep going up each year. Starting next year would mean an additional $150 million.

A healthy chunk of the money will go towards building up local infrastructure and improving traffic congestion, among other things. The Chicago Bears are on a mission to get this done, even though there is plenty of opposition from public land preservation groups and Illinois Governor Pritzker. Warren has a lot of tough negotiations ahead of him, but nobody expected him to get this far. It feels like this stadium will get done. If things go as planned, the Bears may soon be the envy of the league.