Examining why Chiefs’ move to Kansas can’t be a model for the Bears (Hour 4)
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
This hour is sponsored by Riverfront Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram.
Welcome to Hollis Harbor. Right here on the Chicagoland shoreline, a fully privately financed site, zero taxpayer burden, zero debt on the team, zero compromise. Our offer to the bears is to use this rent free. Set minutes for major highways, a dedicated rail stop, and the shoreline itself, designed for arrival, access, and safety.
What is the pitch from Portage, Indiana to lure the Bears?
The capital is ready. The land is available now. Shovels can be in the ground as soon as June 2026. The only variable left is the decision to move forward.
That was the Portage Park sizzle reel, is what I would like to call it. The Portage, Indiana sizzle reel that we saw and that they sent to us here at 104.3 The Score. This is Rahimi Harrison-Grody. And the Portage, Indiana Mayor Austin Bonta is kind enough to join us now live via the Circus Sports Illinois hotline. Download the Circus Sports app today and you heard the pitch. to be able to have a stadium funded where the Bears and the public don't have to deal with the cost. And he's on Twitch. Mayor Bonta, thank you for joining us on Twitch, twitch.tv slash thescorechicago. Thanks for coming on.
Thanks for having me. Really excited to be here. Great to be able to talk about the city. And more importantly right now, I think talking about the Bears and what I hope is the best offer for them.
Well, and you know what? You guys sent us mail. And so when you send an email and you send a pitch, we are reading and we are listening. So thank you for sending us the video. Thank you for sending us the information. Number one, how do you feel that your pitch was received when you had the press conference yesterday announcing this plan?
I think it's been received tremendously and with great interest. It was already making some news as of Monday and then, of course, the Tuesday morning. And it was as that attention was growing, we felt it was very important to get the facts out, give the opportunity to get questions answered. And that's where we called a press conference. And it was exciting to see so much interest from the media to be able to come out and learn about what the city has to offer to the Bears, to fans, and to the whole Chicagoland region.
I'm really curious as to how this came about. Can you tell us the initial steps? Was this you being approached by someone? Was this you understanding that the Bears didn't have a home to see if you could get in the mix? How did this start?
So it really started back in January of 2024 when my team came in. I'm on my third year as mayor now, and we came in. Our city had owned this piece of land, which used to be a lot smaller of a piece of land, since 1995. And there's been different attempts over the years. Different companies have come and gone. Different ideas have been proposed of what they want to do with this land. In particular, how to create connectivity between 249 and Route 12. When we came in, what we looked at is that to the east of the land, there was all of this really great property, also undeveloped land, but it had multiple different owners and it had multiple different shapes. And so in addition to not being very accessible, undeveloped land, the ownership situation made it a maze to be able to get somebody to come in and develop it.
So we knew from the start what we had to do over the last two years was start working with other owners to be able to buy the different pieces of land and That's how we've now ended up with over 300 acres at this site. It's an incredible site where the highways, the train and the waterway all come together to create this really great destination. And from the beginning, when we looked at this site back in January of 2024, we said, now keep in mind, that was two years ago. I think the Arlington deal or the original Arlington deal, as announced, was maybe only a year old by then. We said, man, this would have actually been a great spot to pitch the Bears. But, you know, timing doesn't always work out.
So flash forward... to December 17th, 2025, when the Bears announced the surge has expanded to the entire Chicagoland area, we said, man, this was on our minds from the beginning.
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Chapters
7 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:01–0:32
2
What is the pitch from Portage, Indiana to lure the Bears?
0:32–4:56
3
How does the Portage mayor describe the proposed stadium site?
4:56–10:46
4
What challenges did Portage face in acquiring land for the Bears?
10:46–22:26
5
What are the connectivity plans for the proposed stadium site?
22:26–40:00
6
How does Portage's offer differ from typical stadium funding models?
40:00–42:38
7
What are the financial implications of the proposed stadium deal?
42:38–42:52
Speakers
4 identifiedMore from Rahimi & Grote Show
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