New Soldier Field proposal puts Bears stadium fight back in Chicago politics

A new proposal to keep the Bears at Soldier Field has pushed the team’s stadium fight back into Chicago’s political conversation. Mayoral candidate Willie Wilson unveiled a five-point plan this week that calls for a dome, a larger stadium and a Super Bowl bid.

Axios Chicago reported that Wilson’s proposal would expand Soldier Field to 70,000 seats, seek an NFL Super Bowl and use the former Michael Reese Hospital property for a nearby Bears practice facility. It also calls for a 10-year property-tax cap.

The plan arrives while the Bears are focused on a privately controlled stadium and entertainment district elsewhere. The team has considered Hammond, Indiana, and Arlington Heights, while city and state officials have not produced a financing and property-tax structure that resolves the team’s concerns.

That gap is the story’s practical limit. Wilson’s proposal gives Chicago voters a new version of the keep-the-Bears-home argument, but it does not represent a team commitment or a completed public deal. The Bears’ stated preference remains a development they can own and operate around a new stadium.

The proposal matters because the stadium question is moving into the 2027 mayoral campaign before the Bears have settled their location. For fans, the immediate outcome is another competing vision for what the franchise’s Chicago future could look like.