Bears News: Arlington Park approved for potential football stadium |
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. — According to Chicago Tribune reporter Robert McCoppin, local officials in Arlington Heights, Illinois, approved Arlington Park's usage as a football venue. The Chicago Bears recently bid on the 326-acre site, which currently hosts the Arlington International Racecourse and is used for gambling and horseracing, and are rumored to be considering building a new stadium there.
McCoppin reported on Tuesday that officials voted this week on whether or not to approve Arlington Park as the potential site of a football stadium, and the vote passed. Churchill Downs — of Kentucky Derby fame — currently owns the property, and the Bears recently entered into a partnership with Churchill Downs as part of a gambling sponsorship. There is still a long way to go before the Bears' stadium situation is resolved, but the writing is on the wall for a potential relocation to Arlington Park. The vote to approve the venue for football was a key step in the direction of the Bears opting to move out of Soldier Field near downtown Chicago and to the Arlington Heights suburb. Whether or not it will inspire city officials in Chicago to allocate funds toward renovating Soldier Field remains to be seen.
