Pritzker "Skeptical" of Bears Stadium Plan
Governor JB Pritzker speaks in Maywood Wednesday.
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Governor JB Pritzker was asked Wednesday morning about the Chicago Bears stadium proposal which would cost taxpayers potentially $2.5 billion. Let’s just say he isn’t wildly enthusiastic:
“Let me start out by saying I’m a Bears fan. But, before I became Governor, I was a businessman and I’ve tried to be a good steward of taxpayer dollars throughout my term in office. I’ve been very active at trying to attract businesses to Illinois and helping companies in Illinois expand, so that’s something that I do with, again, the role of protector of the Illinois taxpayers’ dollars in mind at all times.
But, I remain skeptical about this proposal and I wonder if it’s a good deal for the taxpayers. It’s early on. I have not even heard the announcement today, but obviously read your reporting and others. It’s very important to me, that, with all the state has to accomplish, that we think about what the priorities are of the state. There are a lot of priorities the state has, and I’m not sure this is among the highest priorities for taxpayers.”
Asked about what it would take to get him on board:
“Maybe one lesson that could be learned from the last few years is: stadium deals and taxpayers putting money forward for stadium deals, not particularly popular around the country.
Take note that the winner of the Super Bowl this year, the team went out to get a stadium financed by the public and it was rejected by the public in a place where the Super Bowl champions reside.
I think that this is a recognition that these are private businesses. That the owners of the private businesses need to put a lot more forward in order to have their dreams fulfilled and not just rely upon the taxpayers of Illinois to make that happen for them. Having said that, I think all of us want success for the state, we want more commerce, we want more jobs, we want our teams to be successful, so we share all of that in common. But we’ve gotta use our dollars wisely.”