Pritzker: Taxpayers shouldn’t be ‘propping up’ Bears stadium plan

During a public appearance Monday in Wheeling, Gov. JB Pritzker put free market capitalism ahead of his desire to see the Bears remain in Chicago by defending the team’s plan to relocate to the Northwest suburbs.

The Bears are a privately owned business, Pritzker said, and if its owners want to move the team to its 326-acre property in Arlington Heights, he’ll support it.

Of course, the longtime Chicagoan made it clear where he’d prefer the team play its home games.

“Look, I’m a Bears fan,” Pritzker said. “I’d like the Bears to stay in the city of Chicago.”

Regardless of where the team winds up, Pritzker said Illinois taxpayers shouldn’t be “propping up” a business worth more than $8 billion with public funding for a new stadium, a stance he’s long held.

“They seem to be doing OK for themselves,” Pritzker added.

Bears President and CEO Kevin Warren on Friday said the team is focused on building a new domed stadium in Arlington Heights. However, he said the franchise won’t be able to move forward unless state lawmakers approve a long-term property tax break on the former Arlington Park racetrack property. The proposed legislation would allow the Bears to negotiate with local taxing authorities like school districts over the amount of taxes that should be paid on the site for up to 40 years.

Pritzker was at the Wheeling Township Elementary School District 21 Community Service Center on Monday to promote the importance of childhood vaccinations as the 2025-26 school year gets underway. He was joined at the lectern by District 21 representatives and local and state health leaders.

Pritzker answered reporters’ questions on a few other topics before departing. In addition to the Bears, the governor was asked about President Donald Trump’s fresh threat to send National Guard troops to Chicago to fight crime.

The governor told the crowd Trump “has absolutely no right and no legal ability” to direct military troops on U.S. soil, a position shared by California Gov. Gavin Newsom after Trump activated the California National Guard to quell protests in the Los Angeles area earlier this year. The dispute is being litigated in the U.S. court system.

Pritzker also addressed comments he made last week about possibly calling on the General Assembly to redraw the state’s congressional districts to further benefit Democratic lawmakers, if Trump-backed Republicans in Texas first take similar action in a way that boosts the GOP’s membership in the U.S. House.

While telling reporters last week that “everything is on the table,” Pritzker on Monday said he has “no desire” to redraw Illinois’ congressional map. Redistricting normally is done every 10 years after the decennial census, Pritzker said, and that’s when it should be done.

“Sure, we could redistrict in Illinois. It’s possible,” Pritzker said. “But that’s not something I want to do.”