A rendering of a proposed White Sox ballpark in the South Loop.
Related Midwest/Provided
There are at least three ways to consider a developer’s recent proposal to form a “financing partnership” to help build new stadiums for the Bears and the White Sox:
– Boy, what a potential boost two stadiums would be for downtown Chicago, which hasn’t been the same since the epidemic.
– For public-watchdog purposes, it would be nice to have Bears chairman George McCaskey and Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf under the same umbrella. You know, keeping your friends close and your enemies closer.
– McCaskey and Reinsdorf together with a hand out could produce a bad-ownership nuclear reaction. Kind of like “Oppenheimer,’’ but with money-grubbing capitalists leading the way instead of brainy physicists. You might be asking how the Bears, who haven’t won a Super Bowl since the 1985 season, and the Sox, who have been a mess for a while, could get any worse. I don’t know, but I don’t want to use public funding to find out.
The thought of subsidizing two difficult franchises, especially ones that can’t deliver on-field results, is almost too much to bear. Shouldn’t the Sox and the Bears be kept apart for the kids’ sake? Those kids will have to pay the bill someday. And probably their kids, too.
It’s important to note that much of this is the dream of a developer, Related Midwest’s Curt Bailey, and not necessarily the dream of the two franchises. Reinsdorf already is interested in building a new ballpark on a 62-acre parcel in the South Loop, which Related Midwest oversees, as long as the city, county and state come bearing a ton of money.
The Bears? Who knows what the Bears are doing. They’ve talked to any hamlet that has a stoplight, a 7-Eleven and a piece of land large enough to plant a stadium. They bought the former Arlington International Racecourse in Arlington Heights with the intent of building a stadium there, but when area school districts balked at giving up tax money to the Bears that’s normally spent on children’s education, they started listening to other towns’ pitches. Now there’s talk of a new domed stadium just south of Soldier Field. The Bears haven’t shopped Justin Fields this much.
Under Bailey’s plan, the White Sox’ new ballpark would be funded by a 35- to 40-year extension of the bonds that are still being used to pay for the Bears’ 2002 renovation of Soldier Field. Those bonds are backed by a hotel tax. There would be additional tax money used for infrastructure improvements on the site and for emergency funds.
Reinsdorf seems to be gambling that his tacit threat of moving the team out of state will spur lawmakers to give him the $1 billion he wants to build the stadium. It’s his best bet. If he takes his appeal directly to fed-up taxpayers, there’s a good chance he’ll never be seen again.
Bundling the financing of two new stadiums would be an insult to taxpayers tired of footing the bill for the filthy rich. The Bears have pledged to pay for a new stadium by themselves. What if the state offered the same bond extension for a new Bears football palace that Reinsdorf would love to have for his new ballpark? Would McCaskey suddenly take a vow of silence about his vow to use zero public funds for the building of a stadium?
The big thing these days is not just to erect a stadium with all the latest bells and whistles but to create an entertainment district around it. The idea is that fans will spend money on food, drink, hotels and gambling before and after games. The tax money the Bears want from school districts around their Arlington Heights site would be used to create that game-day experience around the stadium. Yes, they are thinking of you, the fan – they’re thinking it would be great to make more money off you.
The concept of two teams downtown is appealing. It could energize the area. Restaurants and stores would pop up. So would gambling opportunities for fans, the way fleas follow dogs. But both teams want tax money. Reinsdorf isn’t shy about it. The Bears are seeking “additional funding’’ not directly tied to the construction of a new stadium. That will be a significant amount of money, though they’d prefer you ignore that.
“Wouldn’t it be unbelievable for our city if you were to see two amazing facilities for these great sports teams built at once?” Bailey told the Sun-Times.
Curt, sweetheart, these aren’t two “great sports teams.’’ The Bears have forgotten how to win, and the White Sox have an owner so stuck in his ways that hydraulics couldn’t move him.
So a financial partnership to pay for two new stadiums? I fear it would unleash sinister forces we’ve never even considered.