re: Why do the Bears want to move out of Soldier Field?

quote:

---

stlslick
Bears billionaire owners feel that the people of Chicago, and state of illinois are fricking chumps and even tho times are tough right now, they should be funding them the land and a brand new stadium, and the city will be paying on it 30 years down the road in new bonds every 10 years.

Sorry gas is $5+ in the state, pay for a new stadium you fricking grunts.

---

Poli boarders, ffs...

Anyway, besides all of the other reasons mentioned, it's a pain to get to if you live in the suburbs. If yiu take the train, the closest station is about a mile away which doesn't sound too bad before you think about making the trek in the Chicago winter.

quote:

---

They also want a dome. This allows them to host the Super Bowl.

---

Yep, and once that’s done, the old legendary “black and blue” division…the “NFC Norris” as Berman used to call it….the division of frozen tundras, Lombardi, Butkus, Bud Grant, Ditka and more…will be 3/4s indoor, domed football.

Thank goodness for Lambeau Field at least.

It's not just the stadium (which is a Historic Landmark, owned by the Chicago Park District, so "just buy it" is complicated). They also want to own and/or develop all the land around the stadium (parking, business park, hotels, bars/restaurants, etc), and build a dome so they can host the Super Bowl, Final Fours, Wrestlemanias, concerts year-round... there's no space to develop the immediate vicinity around Soldier Field, and much of it is parkland that is subject to certain governmental regulations / interest of public-interest groups. It's very complicated.

I love Soldier Field (which is a hottake) but not only is it the smallest stadium in the NFL (despite being the stadium of the biggest city that doesn't have multiple teams), there's all that other stuff mentioned above, as well. The NFL business model is different than the MLB/NHL/NBA business model; it's not about getting people into the gate for the 8 games/year, it's about using the stadium and immediate surrounding area for all of the other miscellaneous opportunities year-round.

Had no clue it was the smallest stadium in NFL. Idk why but it looks big on TV to me.

When the wind blows off that lake, it is bone chilling. Late season nightmare in my opinion.