Mayor Of Arlington Heights Says That The Bears Moving To The Suburbs Is "Still On The Table"
Arlington Heights Mayor Tom Hayes said there are fewer than 10 Arlington Park redevelopment proposals of which he's aware, ahead of a Tuesday deadline for developers and investors to submit initial offers to track owner Churchill Downs Inc. and its real estate broker.
That includes "a couple" groups that hope to preserve horse racing at the iconic track in some form, Hayes said.
The deadline for proposals for Arlington is TODAY and it feels like ole Mayor Tom Hayes is doing the classic mystery buyer routine in order to drum up additional bids for Arlington Race Track.
Mayor: We fewer than 10 redevelopment proposals AND one of them might be the Bears. I can't say. But it could be. It's on the table"
Media: Have you actually spoken to the Bears? Do you have anything in writing?
Mayor:
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I just don't think it is going to happen any time soon. The Bears lease with Soldier Field runs through 2033. The only way to get out of the lease immediately is for an ownership change, supposedly. For that to happen Virginia would need to pass on or the team would have to be sold. Neither of those things will happen today.
Having said that…Soldier Field needs an upgrade. I don't know what the answer is because I want Arlington to be a racetrack forever, but the Chicago Bears playing in the largest city with just one team while also having the smallest stadium is a joke. They need to find away to expand by another 20k seats. It's crazy that the city updated Soldier Field 20 years ago and it is already outdated. It was probably a bit outdated when it opened. It's just too small for a market this big and a team as iconic as the Bears.
The silver lining to all of this is that it's unlikely Arlington will be sold to someone who wants to get rid of the racetrack. Churchill Downs tried their best but it would appear as though the city of Arlington isn't playing ball with Churchill unless the Bears step up to the plate.
Roy Arnold, the former Arlington Park president who is leading a group that hopes to keep the track and add other amenities, said he was putting the finishing touches on his group's letter of interest. He planned to send it to CBRE, Churchill's real estate broker, Monday or Tuesday.
"I am optimistic when they see the offer has a credible number, and we have a clear and cogent plan for development of the property, that we will at least get an opportunity to sit down and have a business discussion with them and see if there's a way for both parties to get to a 'yes,'" Arnold said. "We're going to put an offer in. It's a credible offer. It's a material offer. And I think it'll get due consideration."
Fix Soldier Field somehow. Add another bowl level in the endzones. Get it up to a capacity level that makes sense and let our horses run at Arlington. Chicagoland not having a real racetrack is just unacceptable. They need to make Arlington great again. Churchill Downs has been trying their best to get rid of it. Take the Bears off the table, mayor. Leave both places as the institutions they are.