Arlington Heights proposes tax deal for Bears stadium

Arlington Heights village officials have unveiled their proposed settlement to a long-running property tax dispute between the Chicago Bears and three area school districts over the vacant Arlington Park racetrack.

The deal would have the Bears paying $6.3 million in property taxes for the 2023 tax year, $3.6 million for 2024 and negotiated annual increases of 3% to 10% the following three years based upon market conditions, Village Manager Randy Recklaus said during a village board meeting Monday night.

Under a Cook County Board of Review ruling in late February, the Bears would have to pay nearly $9 million in 2023 taxes, Recklaus said.

“This is just a proposal that we made to the Chicago Bears and the school districts, and we encourage both parties to continue discussions on this issue and offer further alternative solutions to these issues,” Recklaus said.

The village’s proposal is based on a property value of $124.7 million — the same number used by the board of review. But for 2023, the site would be assessed at 25% of the fair market value — the common commercial standard in Cook County — for half the year, and at the 10% vacancy rate the other half.

This year, village officials propose assessing the property at 10%, now that it’s vacant.

Recklaus said he doesn’t think the review board sufficiently considered the property’s status: an unlicensed racetrack facility with no ability to generate revenue and in various stages of demolition.

Village records released to the Daily Herald on Monday show Recklaus made the pitch to the Bears, Northwest Suburban High School District 214, Palatine-Schaumburg High School District 211 and Palatine Township Elementary District 15 on Feb. 27, just days after the board of review decision.

The village manager’s public statement on the closed-doors discussions comes a week after the Bears announced they’ve shifted their focus for the site of a new domed stadium away from the 326-acre Arlington Park site to the parking area just south of Soldier Field.

Recklaus reiterated Monday he has spoken to Bears representatives, who confirmed their interest in the Arlington Park property as a potential stadium site “has not changed,” despite their current organizational focus on sites in Chicago.

Read more at dailyherald.com.