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A dome could make the nearly century-old
stadium more desirable for the Chicago Bears and other potential
users, if it is economically and architecturally viable. The
Bears signed a purchase agreement for Arlington International
Racecourse in Arlington Heights, Ill., and could build a stadium
complex there.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot said in February that adding a dome could
be considered as part of the work done by her Lakefront Museum
Campus Working Group, which is reimaging the area around Soldier
Field.
Crain's said a draft of a soon-to-be-released report prepared by
the group said a dome could cost anywhere from $400 million to
$1.5 billion and likely would require public financial
assistance.
In addition to a dome, the city could consider a variety of
structural changes to Soldier Field, including "substantially
rebuilding" parts of the stadium, per Crain's. Selling naming
rights also could be under consideration.
"We're going to continue to do everything we can to keep the
Bears in Chicago," Lightfoot said in an interview on WSCR-AM 670
in February. "We're working on some plans to present to them
that I think will make a very, very compelling financial case as
to why it makes an abundance of sense for them to stay in
Chicago."
Soldier Field is owned by the Chicago Park District. With 61,500
fans, it has the lowest capacity in the NFL.
It opened in 1924. The next-oldest stadium in the league is
Lambeau Field in Green Bay, which dates to 1957.
--Field Level Media
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