Pritzker Dings Johnson Over Bears Stadium Talks
Gov. JB Pritzker in Chicago Monday. (Photo: Governor’s office)
Long simmering tensions between Governor JB Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson popped up again Monday as Pritzker and the General Assembly face an end-of-session deadline to pass legislation to keep the Chicago Bears in the state of Illinois. Meanwhile, Johnson has inserted himself into talks in recent days in a Hail Mary attempt to keep the team in the City of Chicago.
Distaste and frustrations between the two men and their staffs are a poorly kept secret in political circles, and Johnson’s insertion into the already strained Bears discussions led Pritzker to take a shot at Johnson’s strategy.
“He has no plan. He’s come up with no plan at all about how the Bears would end up in the city of Chicago. So that’s problematic. I’d love them to be in the city, but we are three years in now, and he still has no plan,” Pritzker said Monday. “This is kind of typical. The mayor has shown up every spring at the end of session to pronounce what he would like to see happen.”
The comments come as Senate leaders remain tight-lipped on the status of the so-called “Megaprojects” bill that would allow the Bears to capture a major property tax reduction to build a new stadium in Arlington Heights. The chamber is expected to make changes, potentially major changes, to the version of the legislation passed by the House in April.
Pritzker says he believes the Bears are no longer entertaining options to stay in the city and he’s focused on the Arlington Heights proposal.
“The Bears have said publicly, and I think they said so last Friday, again, that they have now only two options, that’s the state of Indiana or Arlington Heights,” he said. “We would like them to stay in the state of Illinois, and so I’m fighting hard to make sure they can do that.”
Pritzker also dismissed a Johnson idea to take over the Illinois Sports Facilities Authority, which oversees the White Sox stadium and manages the debt on the 2002 Soldier Field renovation. Johnson, we’re told, pitched the idea to a Chicago newspaper without any discussions with the state.
Sources say Pritzker is frustrated that Johnson is trying to “gum up” the negotiations to keep the Bears in Illinois. Some Democrats even believe he’s using the latest skirmish to blame Johnson if the Bears deal falls apart.
“JB’s looking for a fall guy,” said one top Democratic insider Monday. “And Brandon [Johnson] has shown he’s a pretty easy punching bag.”
Pritzker did express a level of confidence Monday the Bears/megaprojects bill would advance before the legislature adjourns May 31.
