Aurora’s back, everybody! The western Chicago suburb was one of several that threw its hat in the ring last year to be the new home of the Chicago Bears before team execs settled on the Chicago lakefront as their preferred site. Now that that effort has stalled, at least for the moment, it’s apparently open season again, and Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin and the city’s state senate and state house reps and local assessor took to the op-ed pages of the Chicago Tribune yesterday to explain why Aurora is the one:
While searching for a location for a new domed stadium, the Bears don’t need to call a Hail Mary pass; they have an ideal choice in Aurora, our state’s second-largest and fastest-growing economy.
Tell us more! Preferably without more football metaphors!
Aurora will move now on a magnificent domed stadium that benefits everyone. We have properties ripe for development and incentives that are unmatched. Fans won’t be reading about stalled negotiations or potential lawsuits if the Bears choose Aurora.
Why is that?
That’s because we’re on a winning streak and view a new Bears stadium as our next successful play.
Without football metaphors, please. I thought I was clear. But anyway, how does Aurora plan to build a domed stadium, magnificent or otherwise, which would come with a price tag of perhaps $2 billion?
Whether commuting by car, rail or plane, Aurora has the infrastructure to welcome everyone to our ever-expanding community.
That’s nice, but — wait, plane? There are people who commute from Aurora to Chicago by plane? How enormous is their carbon footprint?
Anyway, the stadium, who’s going to pay for the stadium?
Anchored by a $400 million expansion and revision of the Hollywood Casino, the Aurora Entertainment District will be home to a new 225-room premier hotel and 12,000 square feet of event space, a 1,000-space parking garage, and a host of restaurant and entertainment venues.
Okay, you’re providing property tax kickbacks so that your casino won’t threaten to move out of town, that’s nice, but the stadium, who’s going to pay for the stadium?
Aurora is the second-largest city in Illinois because of its unwavering determination to partner with businesses, including our favorite sports franchise, to build its new home. Aurora doesn’t let the future happen; we create it. Our shopping center, the Aurora Premium Outlet Mall, continues to grow with millions of visitors a year.
That mall got tax increment financing from Aurora, too, by the way. Is that what you’re saying, Mayor Irvin, that you’re going to rebate property taxes from a Bears stadium and hope that’s enough to lure them to town?
Our fiber optic network is among the largest in Illinois, including most of the Midwest.
You’re reaching now, man. Any closing arguments?
Aurora has it all going on!
This is, needless to say, less a serious stadium proposal than an attempt by Aurora officials to get some free publicity for their suburb and all of its, let’s call them “local attractions.” But it’s in team ownership’s interest to take it seriously, or at least pretend to, because even unserious proposals are useful in ginning up bidding wars among municipalities. Look, here’s Bears President Kevin Warren now!
“I am happy to see Mayor Irvin here today. He’s an astute businessman,” Warren said during [a luncheon event held by the Lincoln Forum, sadly not this one]. “Aurora is a special place.”
And that’s a wrap! Aurora has just as much of a plan for luring the Bears as Greensboro, but expect to see it mentioned in every article now about where the Bears will end up after their lease on Soldier Field expires in 2033. Will the mayor of Naperville now up his op-ed game to get back in the discussion? You can feel the excitement, or maybe that’s just the roar of all the airplanes taking off for O’Hare, Aurora truly has it all going on!
Obligatory Aurora crazy talk:
So Wayne, I hear you’re putting on some kind of concert. That’s good. People need to be entertained, they need the distraction.
Move over Garth, Mayor Richard Irvin (along with Corey Woods and Jennifer Adams) is better at playing the dork than Dana Carvey.
I wish to God that someone would be able to block out the voices in my head for five minutes, the voices that scream, over and over again: “Why do they come to me to die? Why do they come to me to die?”
I’m pulling for ya, Aurora. I like the Bears, but I like the lakefront more. The thought of getting the Bears away from there appeals to me more than adding a bigger, more gaudy Bears presence.
Neil
I love the humor in this one…you are at the top of your game here!
“Aurora is a special place…. specially when they wanna hand me bags of cash.”
Glendale got da Tanger Outlets AND Arrowhead Mall!!!
Glendale is less than one mile from the fastest growing university in the country!!! GO LOPES!!!!
Glendale is halfway between the 2 largest semiconductor fab campuses in the country, TSMC and Intel!!!
Glendale has your loser (17-49) White Sox spring training!!! And we’re still a couple of hundred million in debt for that.
Glendale’s population is almost 50% more than Aurora!!!
Glendale would be da perfect city for da Bears to move to, we already have a 70,000 seat dome!!! And have hosted 3 Superbowls!!!
OOPS, sorry, we’ve already taken one of Chicago’s NFL teams, we wouldn’t be mean enough to take both. Sorry, we guess you’ll have to let Aurora and Naperville fight it out.
“properties ripe for development and incentives that are unmatched” is giving serious used-car salesman energy. If you buy now, we’ll throw in two years’ worth of salaries for sign-spinner dudes to stand out next to the freeway and major arterials, directing traffic to the stadium! What’s this guy’s business background again?
Wayne’s World
Excellent
Totally
Wayne’s World
Party on Garth!!!
When was the last time you talked about Aurora, Illinois? Now there are stories all over the internet about that place. Free publicity.
Aurora Rocks! Aurora Rocks!
When I first read the mention of the Aurora Premium Outlet Mall, I thought it was a mistake because Aurora Ohio also has an outlet mall. So now I know there are 2 Aurora Outlet Malls.
Maybe someone can organize Aurora Mall Tour hitting malls in the 30 or so different cities and towns named Aurora in the US although 4-5 are in Wisconsin
Aurora is no special city — it is a far-west suburb whose politicians are living in a 1970s time warp. Aurora is also adjacent to Fermilab, a major scientific research facility that is so poorly operated, the US Department of Energy is soliciting proposals for new management.
The Bears would’ve had construction underway already at Arlington Park had they had competent management in place.
The Bears would’ve had construction underway already at Arlington Park if they wanted to pay property taxes.
I still think the issue wasn’t property taxes as much as it was someone finally telling the McCaskeys, “What in the hell are you doing moving to a suburb 25 miles northwest of the city and cutting off at least half of your season ticket holder base?” The property tax issue is just a convenient excuse.
There needs to be a category of stadium saga that includes this and the Howard Terminal fiasco. Owners who take a fanciful stadium scenario that many smart people said was stupid from jump street way too seriously for way too long, then realize right as they’re about to finalize the deal that it ain’t worth sinking the money they initially promised and desperately try to back out of. I feel like there have been a few of these over the years. (Real heads will remember when Al Davis considered a gravel pit in Irwindale for the then-LA Raiders as another one).
Or they were never serious about moving to Arlington Heights, but figured (rightly, it turns out) that it would be a good way to light a fire under Chicago city officials.
As I find myself saying more and more, the great thing about being a sports team owner and making a move threat is that you don’t have to decide whether you’re serious about it, you can just rattle that saber and see what happens. (Unless you’re John Fisher/Dave Kaval and accidentally burn your bridges in your home city while doing so, that is.)