The Bears have added Aurora, a Chicago suburb, "to the list
of potential sites for a new football stadium," according to Mike
Mulligan of the CHICAGO SUN TIMES. The team as secured an option
to buy a 207-acre property "in the far northeast side of Aurora,
along the Interstate 88 Research and Development Corridor." The
parcel is roughly 25 miles west of Chicago. Bears President Mike
McCaskey hopes to have four sites to take to the state
legislature "in hopes of determining a final site by January" so
construction can be completed for the 2000 season. The Chicago
site will be proposed by the city (CHICAGO SUN TIMES, 8/10). The
Bears already have an option on lands in Hoffman Estates, about
20 miles northwest of the city. McCaskey: "The city (of Chicago)
will have to make its decision about what its favorite site is,
and as I understand it, they are looking at two or three sites.
We favor whatever site is most doable and can be committed to by
the end of 1995." Funding questions "remain a major stumbling
block in the team's stadium plans," legislators said it is
"unlikely" the IL General Assembly would give the Bears $185M in
state bonds to help pay for the $285M stadium" (Peter Baniak,
CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 8/10).
