Mayor Wants Chicago To Have A 'Real Seat At The Table' With Bears

CHICAGO — Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson is of a certain age that he links some of his fondest memories of the city’s NFL franchise to the “Super Bowl Shuffle.”

But decades after the Bears celebrated their run to a Super Bowl victory over the New England Patriots to culminate a magical 1985 season, the major is now doing his best to keep the Bears from dancing their way to the suburbs.

Johnson, who has only been in office for three weeks, told reporters on Wednesday that he has had a preliminary video conversation with new Bears President Kevin Warren about the possibility of keeping the Bears from leaving the city. The conversation comes just days after the Bears announced that they are now considering other possible landing spots outside of Arlington Heights.

For months, the Bears had said that the former Arlington Park Racecourse property was their singular focus for a new football home. But on Friday, the team announced Warren met with city officials in Naperville last week after Mayor Scott Wehrli reached out to the team about considering Naperville for the site of a new stadium.

Johnson told reporters on Wednesday that his conversation with Warren was only preliminary and declined to specify what he told the Bears president about what the city could offer the team. The Bears have a lease with the Chicago Park District, which owns Soldier Field through 2033, but the team has indicated it is looking for an enclosed stadium that would be able to host other big events besides Bears home games.

“We want to make sure we can keep shuffling here in the city of Chicago with the Bears,” Johnson told reporters, saying he had grown up with the "Super Bowl Shuffle."

A Bears spokesman told Patch on Tuesday that there was no new news to report when asked specifically if talks were scheduled with the city. However, after Wednesday's phone conversation, Warren and Johnson issued a joint statement, speaking of "shared values."

“Today we met and discussed our shared values and commitment to the City of Chicago, the importance of deep roots, and the need for equitable community investment throughout the city," the two officials said in the joint statement. "We are both committed to the idea that the city and its major civic institutions must grow and evolve together to meet the needs of the future. We look forward to continuing the dialogue around these shared values.”

The Bears have been considered a long shot to remain in Chicago after conversations between the team and city officials broke down while former mayor Lori Lightfoot was in office. Lightfoot introduced the idea of a reimagined Soldier Field, which would undergo a $2.2 billion facelift to add a roof and make other improvements designed to entice the Bears to remain in Chicago.

On Wednesday, Johnson said that like with many issues facing the city, conversations have to take place, the mayor said. However, he added that sometimes, talks break down because "people have vested interests and they might get in their feelings a little bit."

Lightfoot's proposed plans for a reimaged Lakefront campus and Soldier Field were considered a Hail Mary effort to keep the team in the city after team officials set their sights on Arlington Heights. But last week, the team said that the village was no longer its singular focus namely based on proposed property tax values at the 326-acre former site of the racecourse.

Now, Johnson, who on Wednesday referred to himself as the “hardest working person in the city of Chicago” said he will make every effort to keep the Bears from leaving for the suburbs.

“I want to make sure the ownership of the Chicago Bears, the Park District and the residents of the city of Chicago have a real seat at the table to discuss a pathway forward,” Johnson told reporters on Wednesday.