A few days ago it was reported by the Chicago Tribune that there is a widespread belief that if and when the Chicago Bears look to establish a new stadium in Arlington Heights, the odds heavily favor it being a domed building. Why? The allure of having a venue that can be used year-round. Not just for Bears games but also concerts, college football and basketball playoffs, and maybe even hosting a Super Bowl.
It sounds nice in theory, but here’s the thing. Would that building really host such events on a regular basis? College basketball is one thing but it’s unlikely the NCAA sends its biggest college football bowl games to Arlington Heights in the dead of winter. This and a number of other reasons are why Marc Ganis of Sportscorp, a well-respected stadium expert, believes the dome idea isn’t nearly as set in stone as people think.
Especially due to the overall cost.
“With no permanent cover for the stadium, you’d be looking at somewhere around $1.5 billion to $1.8 billion,” said Marc Ganis, the president of Chicago-based sports consulting firm Sportscorp, who has extensive experience working with franchises and leagues on stadium issues. “With the land, you would probably be looking at that being a $2 billion project roughly. When you start adding a fixed dome or a retractable roof, you have two other enormous costs…
…“At the low end, you would be looking at another $400 million for a domed roof but it could easily be $800 million to $1 billion if you’re talking about a retractable roof with full air conditioning and heating that would have to handle Chicago snow loads. One of the ways roofs on these domes handle snow loads is they pump in a tremendous amount of heat to melt the snow rather than have the snow sit on the roof itself. We’re talking about significant costs in this day and age of green and energy savings.”
In other words, if the Bears went ahead with a domed ceiling or retractable roof? Their bill for the new building would go from $2 billion to $2.5-3 billion. For some NFL owners that wouldn’t be a huge deal. The McCaskeys aren’t those owners. While they do own this franchise, which is among the most valuable in the country, they don’t have other businesses feeding them further revenue. The Bears are their business.
So spending $3 billion on a state-of-the-art stadium with a retractable roof is a pricey investment. On the flip side, there are ways to do an open-air stadium that improves the fan experience and still makes it a prime destination. One example used was the Seahawks’ home Seattle. Its architecture and design were meant to enhance crowd noise and also keep most fans sheltered from the elements.
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Chicago Bears likely won’t unveil plans for some time
This is going to be a story that sticks around for years. The organization will soon fully own the Arlington Park property. From there they have several hurdles to clear. Designing said stadium. Finding the funding to build it. Not to mention figuring a way out of the lease they signed with Soldier Field. A lease that runs through 2033. All of that is going to cost money. How much is this team willing to pay in order to make this happen?
The good news is they’re likely to get lots of help. Private investors will no doubt want in on this action. The Chicago Bears are a founding franchise with a gigantic fanbase. That leads to huge revenue opportunities. There is also a belief the NFL itself will provide some help via funding as well. Something they’ve done for other organizations in recent years.
This project will happen. It’s a matter of time and logistics.
Will the McCaskeys aim high for that domed complex that is all the rage these days? Or will they opt to stick with “Bear weather” and mitigate the costs with an open-air building? It is far too early in the process to know for sure. Either way, this will be a fun process to follow.
