With the Chicago Bears exploring suburban options beyond Arlington Heights as a site for a new stadium, Richton Park is making its pitch to the team.
In a recent letter to Bears President and CEO Kevin Warren, Richton Park Mayor Rick Reinbold touts large expanses of available land and the south suburb’s proximity to highways and the Metra Electric Line.
“I understand how the complexity of completing a stadium deal at the former Arlington Park site can be frustrating,” Reinbold told Warren in the July 21 letter. “Allow me to interest you in greenfield opportunities awaiting the Bears in Richton Park!”
Work is proceeding to demolish Arlington International Racecourse in Arlington Heights, but suburbs including Aurora and Naperville are also interested in hosting the team.
Warren has said recently that Arlington Heights is “not a singular focus” for the team as it considers alternatives to remaining at Chicago’s Soldier Field.
In his letter, Reinbold describes Richton Park, with a population of about 13,000, as a “lively and diverse community” 30 minutes southwest of the Loop.
He said about 1,000 acres of largely undeveloped land is available west of Interstate 57, which would “offer the best chance at creative development.”
The suburb is “the center of a prosperous trade area” and “sits in the middle of an affluent middle- and upper-middle class swath of the south and southwest suburbs,” the mayor told the Bears executive.
Reinbold said Richton Park and neighboring communities including Frankfort, Matteson and Olympia Fields “have a combined median household income of $98,000, well above the region’s $81,000 figure.”
This is a developing story. Check back for more details.
mnolan@tribpub.com
