New Chicago Bears stadium on lakefront south of Soldier Field opposed by Friends of the Park

CHICAGO (WLS) -- Friends of the Park has launched their effort to formally fight plans to build a new Chicago Bears stadium on the city's lakefront.

The group previously defeated plans by "Star Wars" creator George Lucas to build a museum on the same site.

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The Bears' strong push to build a new lakefront stadium is being blocked by a coalition of community groups led by Friends of the park.

"We object to the site they have selected and the ultimate costs to our residents," said executive director Gin Kilgore.

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The Bears' proposal includes building a $3.2 billion stadium south of Soldier Field, the same location where Lucas planned to construct his own museum until Friends of the Park successfully drove his project out of town. The nonprofit took legal action against Lucas, though Kilgore said they're not quite ready to deploy that against the Bears quite yet.

"We'd like to say you never start with a lawsuit, but you don't take it off the table," she said.

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Besides ensuring the lakefront remains "forever open, clear and free," Friends of the Park and other groups strongly oppose any public dollars used for the project. The Bears are seeking $3 billion in taxpayer financing.

"The rich want to increase their playground at the expense of the people who are suffering," said Cheryl Johnson, People for Community Recovery.

The organizers are seeking public support with an online petition.

"So who does benefit from public subsidies for private sports stadiums?" asked Tom Tresser, TIF Illumination Project. "The answer is obvious: local billionaires."

So far Governor JB Pritzker and state lawmakers have been very cool to the idea of using public funds, and the issue is likely not going to come up in the next legislative session.

"Right now there is no building new stadiums on the horizon," Pritzker said.

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In a written response, a Chicago Bears spokesperson said the project will not only create thousands of job but, "our plan also increases the green and open space and provides more year-round access to the lakefront."

Friends of the Park said it has had conversations with the Bears, sharing their concerns with the organizations. But they have yet to reach out to Mayor Brandn Johnson for a conversation.