Soldier Field could get a more than $2 billion upgrade, including a dome, if the NFL’s Bears can be convinced to stay in the city — or if Chicago lands another football team, Mayor Lori Lightfoot said.
In a news conference at Soldier Field on Monday, Lightfoot outlined three scenarios for upgrading the historic sports arena as the Bears focus on building a new stadium as part of a sprawling, mixed-use development in the suburbs.
The most ambitious plan, building a domed structure over and around Soldier Field, could cost about $2.2 billion, according to initial estimates from the city. Lightfoot provided few specific details about how the plan would be funded, other than to say that naming rights could be sold to pay for part of it.
“This is an incredible asset,” Lightfoot said. “One way or the other, we have to invest in Soldier Field.”
The move reflects the importance of sports franchises, and their real estate, on the economic health of their hosts. For example, in the three years leading up to the Super Bowl in February at SoFi Stadium near Los Angeles, roughly $616 million in commercial property was sold in a 1-mile radius, far more investment in the city than at any time in the past three decades. And in Atlanta’s suburbs, Major League Baseball’s Braves joined with brokerage JLL in recent years to develop a more than 1 million-square-foot mixed-use development, with more than 4,000 residential units, that’s become a year-round entertainment center.
In Chicago, visions of a dome probably would turn to reality only if the Bears reconsider their visions of a modern venue in Arlington Heights, Illinois. But Lightfoot and other officials also talked of finding a new anchor tenant should the Bears leave, including luring another NFL team.
“There are plenty of cities that have two NFL teams,” Lightfoot said when asked if the Bears were the only anchor tenant for which the dome plan would be pursued.
Multiple Options
Lightfoot, other local officials and real estate developer Bob Dunn — who has experience building other NFL stadiums and seeks approval for a separate, $20 billion development near Soldier Field — made the public case for the Bears to stay in a dramatically reshaped Soldier Field.
The Bears’ decision and whether it affects Dunn’s ambitious One Central plan could have long-term implications on real estate values in and around Chicago’s South Loop.
Changes also could have major ramifications for the Museum Campus, a key civic asset and one of the Chicago area’s top tourist attractions. Lightfoot described the stadium as “a critical driver of Chicago’s economy.”
Regardless of what the Bears do, Soldier Field — also home to Major League Soccer's Chicago Fire — is due for at least $900 million in renovations, even if it’s to convert the stadium to primarily a soccer stadium, city officials said. That plan would involve raising the field by 42 feet, reducing the seating capacity and improving sightlines, Dunn said.
A second scenario calls for major improvements to the football stadium, with structural changes making it “dome ready” for a future addition.
The costliest plan would include adding the dome and 8,500 seats, boosting capacity from the current 61,500 — the smallest in the NFL — to 70,000 while widening concourses, expanding concessions and improving the overall fan experience.
Lightfoot’s news conference Monday was the mayor’s latest step in an ongoing process to try to get the Bears to reconsider their plans to move from the city, while simultaneously evaluating potential changes to Soldier Field even if the team leaves.
Intentions To Leave
Bears officials have continued to indicate they’re focused on leaving their centurylong home in the city to move to the suburbs, which would cross off Chicago as one of the few remaining major league sports markets where NFL, MLB, NBA and NHL games all are played in the city.
The Bears have a $197.2 million deal to buy the Arlington International Racecourse, the team and the horse-racing track’s longtime owner, Churchill Downs, announced last September.
The Bears’ Soldier Field lease with the Chicago Park District doesn’t expire until 2033.
Unlike city-owned Soldier Field, the Bears could become the owner of their stadium if they build a venue in Arlington Heights, northwest of the city. The team wants to surround the new sports venue with a major real estate development, similar to the SoFi Stadium project that is home to the NFL’s Rams and Chargers.
The Arlington Heights site is 326 acres, likely larger than any parcel the team could assemble within Chicago's city limits.
But Dunn said even at $2 billion-plus, a redeveloped Soldier Field could have a much lower construction cost than a ground-up development funded by the Bears. City officials also say a downtown location would support an entertainment district on nongame days better than a suburban site.
Dunn has taken part in other NFL stadium developments or expansions, including those involving Bears divisional rivals: the Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings and Detroit Lions.
Panel’s Findings
Earlier this month, Lightfoot unveiled the findings of a city-appointed panel to study a potential overhaul of Soldier Field and the city’s Museum Campus, the area along Lake Michigan where Soldier Field sits.
Recommendations included studying the feasibility of putting a dome over the football stadium, making it a year-round destination. That also would help the city pursue other major events such as the Super Bowl, college basketball's Final Four and football bowl games.
Other ideas were to sell naming rights for the stadium, move a concert venue from nearby Northerly Island to alongside Soldier Field, adding a trolley line and other public transit, creating art installations and activating outdoor areas.
The city panel studied a 307-acre area south of the Loop business district, bounded by the lake, DuSable Lake Shore Drive, Roosevelt Road and the Stevenson Expressway. The area includes the 57-acre Museum Campus, whose attractions include the stadium, Field Museum, Shedd Aquarium and Adler Planetarium. It is neighbored by the sprawling McCormick Place convention center and Northerly Island, once home to the single-runway Meigs Field airport.
Neighboring Project
Wisconsin-based Dunn in recent years has been seeking support from city and state officials and several transit agencies to build his $20 billion mixed-use development over train tracks near Soldier Field.
Dunn wants to build a row of towers on a platform over train tracks, while also bringing together several train lines and other transportation and parking space in a new transportation center.
The transit center would be funded by billions of dollars from the state, which eventually would take ownership of the center and its revenue-generating retail and entertainment space.
Dunn and his investors would profit from developing tall buildings on the site, such as apartments and hotels. He has touted the plan as a way for the city to make the lakefront stadium more accessible via public transit or on foot.
Lightfoot on Monday praised Dunn for his “leadership and level of expertise that is second to none” in coming up with potential alternative designs for Soldier Field.
She declined to say whether she plans to support his One Central plan, saying the state is conducting a feasibility study on the project.