Daily Herald opinion: Increasingly 'convoluted' stadium discussions keep pushing Bears decision back

Is it simple irony, or hauntingly fitting, that whenever we hear Bears CEO Kevin Warren referring to decisions about the team's new stadium as "strictly business," we are drawn to the movie "The Godfather," and, among many similar references, Tessio's plea for his life after getting caught betraying Michael Corleone?

"Tell Mike it was only business," Tessio says as he's surrounded by an escort of mobsters. "I always liked him."

Warren, of course, finds himself in quite the opposite position of the hapless Tessio, but as the bids for a piece of the lucrative Bears pie shift ever westward, a faint scent of betrayal still seems to hang somewhere in the air. In an invitation-only appearance at the Metropolis Performing Arts Centre, the Bears president and CEO insisted that the team's talks with Arlington Heights are sincere and that entertaining offers from new suitors in Naperville, Waukegan and now Aurora is just "due diligence." Who could argue the point?

Still, it's hard to imagine that Warren - again unlike Tessio - isn't more than a little pleased with all the new attention as the team challenges the Cook County Assessor's Office's $197 million valuation on the Arlington Heights property and simultaneously fends off potential opposition in Arlington Heights from school districts fearing substantial loss of revenue.

It is, perhaps, also "strictly business" for towns like Naperville, Waukegan and Aurora - or who knows who could be next? - to make their pitches, but serious examination makes it hard to imagine more appealing opportunities than the former Arlington Park, where the Bears already have sunk $197.2 million and begun expensive teardown operations, or Soldier Field, where they already have a long history. What, then, does Warren really mean when he questions whether Arlington Heights "is legitimately a viable option or is it not."

Apparently, an annual tax bill of $4.3 million would help the Bears answer that question. The school districts think $7.9 million is more in the ballpark, pardon the expression. This, by the way, leading to another curious question: Since when do property owners or tax beneficiaries get to negotiate a location's tax bill? Assessor Fritz Kaegi's office says the property's value justifies $16.2 million in taxes.

All of which leads back to Warren's and the school districts' differences over what qualifies as "fairness" and one undisputable truth the Bears CEO expressed to his Arlington Heights audience: "It sounds like it's a little bit more convoluted at this point in time."

Convoluted, indeed. Tessio's predicament was crystal clear, by comparison.