Why Curtis Tarver’s Downtown Chicago Bears Stadium Offer Is Perfect. And Tragic

The Chicago Bears stadium saga has once again settled into a quiet period. Team brass is busy running tests on the Hammond, Indiana site while also trying to put together legislation that could get enough votes in the Illinois legislature. All the while, the city of Chicago itself continues trying to push for a solution that keeps the team in the city. Mayor Brandon Johnson’s attempt to establish a new complex south of Soldier Field was ill-conceived from the start. There have also been talks about the old Michael Reese Hospital area south of McCormick Place. That was deemed too narrow. How ironic is it that only now does Curtis Tarver, a member of the Illinois House, propose a site that makes sense?

The museum campus and Michael Reese were never going to work for obvious reasons. The former was on land that was vehemently protected by activist groups, while the latter was too small. Tarver believes the solution to the problem is simple: the South Works. It is an old steel mill site located on Lake Shore Drive just north of the Calumet River. For just over a century, it served as a massive hub of steel production before being shut down in 1992. Since then, the 600-acre property has sat vacant. Despite planning to build a new hospital and a Quantum Microelectronics Park, Tarver believes there is more than enough space for a Bears stadium.

“Chicago should fight to keep the Bears. A development anchored by the Bears in the South Works corridor could create a year-round destination, strengthen transit and infrastructure, support hotels, restaurants and small businesses, expand the local tax base and create accessible jobs for South Chicago and nearby communities.”

Curtis Tarver knows the South Works offers something other sites don’t.

The first is space. That site is almost twice as big as the one the Bears purchased in Arlington Heights (326 acres) five years ago. Why does this matter? Current estimates suggest the hospital and park planned for construction will combine for around 151 acres of land. That leaves upwards of 449 acres available. It wouldn’t be too much of an issue to set aside 300 of them to build a new Bears stadium and the other revenue-generating projects they have planned. Being located near a hospital would also be beneficial to the team.

Then there is the land itself. It’s lakefront property, which is something team president Kevin Warren has wanted from the beginning. The key here is that it’s still in Chicago and unlikely to receive any blowback from activist groups. After all, the property has been an abandoned steel mill for decades. Not exactly pleasant to look at. This is one of those situations where a new sports complex would actually improve the aesthetic, and it wouldn’t be a threat to local public land.

Sadly, this news comes too late.

The Bears have made it clear for several months that they were only considering two locations at this point: Arlington Heights or Hammond. Every attempt to sway them to a different location has petered out quickly. If Curtis Tarver or somebody else had pushed the South Works harder even a year ago, things might’ve been different. At this stage, it doesn’t seem like the McCaskeys are interested in starting over yet again. It’s already been too long. They want a resolution as soon as possible. Pivoting to the South Works would derail all the progress they’ve made with the other two sites.

It remains puzzling why that location didn’t come up sooner. Several downtown residents had mentioned it as an obvious one since this entire saga began. Yet not until now has someone higher up actually put it forward. It checks all the boxes: lots of space, lakefront property, still in the downtown area, and mostly free from outside resistance. Whatever the case, Representative Tarver at least deserves credit for bringing it up at all. That is more than some of the other prominent players in this game can say.