Crain's Chicago Business says the Chicago Bears' flirtation with Soldier Field's south lot as a new stadium site is a real thing and not a mere leverage tool.
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00 [ Music ]
00:25 >> I mean, ideally, you know, just from the way the market is, you know,
00:28 the longer you wait, the more expensive it is of building any project.
00:33 So I'm -- can make sure I'm focused on not rushing, but making sure that we're deliberate
00:38 in that stadium process because, you know, truly, in that world, time is money.
00:43 And I've said it all along, is that the moment that a shovel goes in the ground,
00:47 I'm confident that we will be able to have a building to play in 36 months after that happens.
00:51 When you build a stadium project, you have to make sure you explore all of your options.
00:55 So it wasn't necessarily that big of a pivot. Even before I accepted the job here,
01:00 I was always looking for what are the places that would fit?
01:03 What would our fans embrace?
01:06 So it wasn't too much of a pivot.
01:08 It just makes sure we have to keep our options open.
01:10 >> I mean, it's not necessarily the South.
01:11 What intrigues me about downtown is I strongly believe Chicago is the finest city
01:19 in all of the world.
01:20 I mean, very rarely do you get an opportunity to have such a beautiful downtown
01:25 with a vibrant business community, with an absolutely beautiful lake
01:29 and the energy that goes along.
01:31 And so I always focus on, you know, what's a way that we could, you know,
01:35 bring together the beauty of the lake, the beauty of downtown, the business community,
01:39 all the art exhibits to bring that together for an environment.
01:44 Because it's always about the fans.
01:45 How can we create an environment that they really enjoy?
01:48 And not only on our game days, but also from art, from food, just from music.
01:54 And, you know, I live downtown.
01:56 I love the city.
01:57 And I just think we're blessed to be able to live in a city like Chicago.
02:02 And so it has many pluses.
02:04 And so I'm just a big proponent of the Chicagoland area.
02:08 I'm a big proponent of Arlington Heights.
02:10 But there's something that's really special about downtown Chicago.
02:13 [MUSIC PLAYING]