Soccer Stadium at Related Midwest Megaproject Draws Support

Plans for a privately-funded Chicago Fire FC stadium received a boost of South Loop resident support.

The South Loop Neighbors group conducted a survey of more than 650 residents and found that 73 percent were supportive, and almost 45 percent of supporters were “strongly supportive” of the proposal. About 10 percent of respondents said they were opposed to the Major League Soccer team’s proposal, Crain’s reported.

The team’s owner, billionaire Joe Mansueto, plans to personally bankroll the $650 million soccer stadium for the Chicago Fire FC at The 78, Related Midwest’s long-stalled megadevelopment in the South Loop. The Fire’s Soldier Field lease expires this year, though the team plans to extend it to bridge the gap until the new stadium is ready.

The planned 22,000-seat open-air stadium, designed by architecture firm Gensler, would give the Fire its own home after years of sharing use of Soldier Field with the Chicago Bears. The stadium would also serve as an anchor for The 78, a 62-acre area along the Chicago River between Chinatown and Roosevelt Road.

The neighborhood support comes several weeks after Related Midwest submitted its zoning application for the stadium plan to the City Council. Even though the stadium itself will be privately funded, city officials will still need to figure out how tax-increment financing dollars could be used to pay for public infrastructure for better access and connectivity.

The South Loop Neighbors group said about 75 percent of the residents that participated in the survey were area homeowners. Some of the comments generated were supportive of the stadium design and vision for a riverwalk extension and other amenities, but concerns about traffic congestion and pedestrian connectivity were brought up. Plans for a Chicago Transit Authority Red Line station at 15th Street and Clark Street were tossed by Related Midwest in June.

In a deal struck earlier this year, Mansueto, the Morningstar Credit founder who bought the team in 2019, would buy 10 acres at The 78.

Terms for the revised redevelopment agreement are still being negotiated by Related Midwest and city planning officials as the scope of the project takes shape. The original 2019 plan called for up to $551 million in infrastructure projects that Related would finance up front and be reimbursed for through property tax gains generated onsite. — Eric Weilbacher