School districts approve Arlington Park tax deal with Bears
Three Arlington Heights-area school districts have given stamps of approval to an agreement with the Chicago Bears that resolves a property tax dispute over Arlington Park and other issues.
Boards of education for Northwest Suburban High School District 214 and Palatine-Schaumburg High School District 211 voted on the 12-page memorandum of understanding late Thursday, following the Palatine Township Elementary District 15 school board’s vote Wednesday night.
Only one member of the three boards, Kim Cavill of District 211, voted against the deal, since it could lay the groundwork for a long-term property tax break for the Bears.
The votes follow the initial approval Monday by the Arlington Heights village board, whose mayor, village manager and village attorney helped broker the deal during negotiations that started in the summer of 2023.
But what becomes of the sprawling former racetrack property remains uncertain, as Bears President/CEO Kevin Warren says he’s still focused on building a new stadium on Chicago’s lakefront.
The agreement will lower the Bears’ annual property tax bill at Arlington Park at least through 2027, from $8.9 million the football club is on the hook for paying this year — but is still appealing — to $3.6 million.
For the schools, reaching a deal with the NFL franchise has always been about more than just short-term property taxes, but long-term issues like securing funds to pay for new students who may live in homes built on the site in the years ahead.
“The largest and most impactful item that is in that (agreement) for us is being made whole with the financial resources necessary to support new students, covering both capital needs as well as associated operational costs should new classrooms or a new school be needed,” said District 15 board President Lisa Szczupaj.
A demographer hired by District 15 estimated 350 to 400 students — enough for a new school — could be generated by the $5 billion mixed-use, transit-oriented development initially unveiled by the team in September 2022.
The pact also contains a formula to cover schools’ per pupil annual operating costs for any new student residents.
For example, if District 214’s per pupil operating expense is $21,000 and there were 10 new students who live there (for a total of $210,000), and if the district received $150,000 in property taxes and other revenues from the property, the district would be entitled to receive another $60,000.
Money for any new classrooms, building additions or even a new school would be covered by resources generated at the property, including a possible tax increment financing district, residential development impact fees, or direct payments from the Bears, developers or homeowners.
Under normal rules when a municipality wants to establish a TIF, a joint review board of local taxing bodies takes an advisory vote. But the agreement at Arlington Park would give that panel teeth, requiring a majority tally and a weighted system based on proportional tax rates. Schools would get the largest share of the vote.
District 15 Superintendent Laurie Heinz said the arrangement gives schools the “seat at the table.”
“What we have really negotiated and fought for is weighted voting,” Heinz said. “And for our district, because the parcel is in our district, we would have a significant voice in whether or not that TIF is formed.”
The same weighted voting system applies to the Payments in Lieu of Taxes financing mechanism the Bears have sought for the stadium portion of the site. The assessment would be frozen up to 40 years, and the Bears would make negotiated payments above that level to the village, schools and other local governments, according to the proposal.
District 15’s boundaries cover the entire property. District 214 covers the eastern two-thirds where the mixed-use district is envisioned, and District 211 covers the western one-third where the stadium would be.