The Chicago Bears’ drive for a new lakefront domed stadium won’t break the line of scrimmage unless they receive at least $325 million in public funding for initial infrastructure upgrades to improve traffic flow into and out of a revamped Museum Campus, team officials said during their kickoff proposal Wednesday.
And that’s just for the first phase of improvements the Bears want to see around their potential new home, as well as a repurposed Soldier Field, according to Karen Murphy, the team’s executive vice president of stadium development.
Two additional infrastructure phases that would “maximize the site” and bring “additional opportunities for publicly owned amenities” could bring taxpayers’ tab to $1.5 billion over about five years, Murphy said.
“We would be excited if all three phases happened. We need Phase 1 to happen for our project specifically,” Murphy said.
The initial stage — if the team can line up state and/or federal funding for it — would move the 18th Street interchange on DuSable Lake Shore Drive a block south, creating a new 19th Street interchange.
They would also add a new parking deck to the current surface lot south of Soldier Field, with a new access route from the south going through the McCormick Place Lakeside Center, according to the team’s presentation.
The new stadium would go where the current Waldron Parking Deck sits, with the remainder of the $325 million covering utilities to open the stadium.
Those parking upgrades and road changes would improve pedestrian and cyclist access, allow 25% more people onto the campus for big events and decrease exit times by 10 minutes, the team claims.
The second phase — at a taxpayer cost of $510 million — would gut the renovated interior of Soldier Field to turn it into multi-use sports fields, while installing additional parking. The plan would increase public park space by 20%, according to Mayor Brandon Johnson.
A $665 million third infrastructure phase would include removing the stoplight on northbound Lake Shore Drive and create an underpass with access ramps to the campus, with a reconfigured exit to Columbus Drive.
Separate routes for pedestrian and vehicle traffic would improve access and traffic times, the team says, increasing capacity by 50% and cutting exit times by 20 minutes.
The priciest phase could also bring in public attractions including a sports museum, plus retail shops and restaurants to the campus, the team said.
The costs are all on top of the $900 million in state bonds backed by hotel tax revenues that the team needs to convince state lawmakers to agree to for the $3.2 billion stadium itself.
Murphy said the team is still figuring out where to find the infrastructure dollars.
“We’ve been working closely with the state and looking at different available funding sources, if it’s the state or the federal government, on how we can make it happen. For us, we need the $325 million to open the stadium,” Murphy said. “I will remind everyone that these infrastructure projects drive jobs, and they create economic impact.”
City officials said Johnson’s office won’t ask the City Council to chip in for the infrastructure upgrades.
