who owns arlington race track?
The Chicago Bears finalized the purchase of Arlington Park property, the team announced Wednesday in an open letter. Here’s what you need to know:
In 1971, the Bears moved from Wrigley Field to Soldier Field to meet the NFL’s requirements for seating capacity. Now, Soldier Field has the smallest capacity in the league (61,500).
The Bears have watched as team after team has built immaculate stadiums, and those franchises don’t have to share revenue as a tenant in their building. As much as the McCaskeys treasure the tradition of Soldier Field, the NFL is a business, and the Bears are lagging behind the rest of the league when it comes to their stadium and making money off it. This has been inevitable. — Fishbain
As the Bears said in their open letter, it’s “an important next step.” But there is still a lot of work to do. The Bears’ letter stressed that point while pitching the project as an opportunity for the region to host “world-class entertainment and sporting events on an unprecedented scale.” The job, though, now belongs to new team president and chief executive officer Kevin Warren — and the Bears are extremely excited about that. Warren’s resume includes the construction of the Vikings’ U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis. It’s one of the best stadiums in the NFL. “When you land it like we did in Minnesota, you can feel it — feel it every way,” Warren said last month. — Jahns
If building an NFL stadium is like running a marathon, the Bears just bought their running shoes. Next up? The expensive and difficult parts. Heck, the Bears might not even run this race.
By closing on their nearly $200 million deal to buy the 326-acre Arlington Park racetrack property, the Bears now have to move on to trying to finance the project, which is expected to cost billions of dollars. The Bears are touting this as one of the “largest mega-projects in Midwest history.” But can they find the money to get it done?
The organization is, of course, asking for public funding for the project. Getting the funding sorted out is the next step.
“If we construct a state-of-the-art stadium, we will not seek taxpayer funds locally or otherwise for the structure,” the Bears wrote in their statement. “If we proceed, however, this project would require assistance to ensure feasibility, including our securing property tax certainty and support for infrastructure commensurate with the public benefits the project will yield to the region.” — Greenberg
“Last fall, we released an open letter confirming the team had reached an agreement for the purpose of acquiring 326 acres of property in Arlington Heights to secure the potential of beginning a new and exciting chapter for the Bears, our fans, the Chicagoland community, and the State of Illinois,” the letter said. “This week, we took another step toward realizing that vision by closing on the Arlington Park property.”
Arlington International Racecourse (formerly Arlington Park, the name was Arlington Park Jockey Club from as early as 1948 until 1955) was a horse race track in the Chicago suburb of Arlington Heights, Illinois. Horse racing in the Chicago region had been a popular sport since the early days of the city in the 1830s, and at one time Chicago had more horse racing tracks (six) than any other major metropolitan area[citation needed]. Arlington International was the site of the first thoroughbred race with a million-dollar purse in 1981. It was located near the Illinois Route 53 expressway. It was serviced by the Chicago and Northwestern Railroad. The premier event at Arlington Park was the International Festival of Racing, held in early August, which featured three Grade 1 races on turf: the Arlington Million Stakes, Beverly D. Stakes and Secretariat Stakes. Owner Churchill Downs Inc. announced plans in February 2021 to sell all 326 acres of Arlington Park property for redevelopment.[1] On September 29, 2021, the Chicago Bears announced that they reached an agreement to purchase the property.[2] The sale was finalized in February of 2023.[3]
Arlington International Racecourse was founded as Arlington Park by California businessman Harry D. "Curly" Brown who would later serve as president of Oriental Park Racetrack in Havana, Cuba.[4] The track officially opened in 1927 to 20,000 spectators. Jockey Joe Bollero, who later became a successful trainer, rode Luxembourg to victory in the first race ever run at Arlington.
Benjamin F. Lindheimer acquired control of Arlington Park in 1940 and owned it until his death in 1960.[5] Long involved with the business, adopted daughter Marje Lindheimer Everett then took over management of the racetrack.[6][7] Widely respected Hall of Fame trainer Jimmy Jones of Calumet Farms was quoted by Sports Illustrated as saying that Lindheimer "was the savior of Chicago racing" and that "Arlington Park became the finest track in the world—certainly the finest I've ever been on."[6]
On July 5, 1948, Citation won the Stars and Stripes Stakes in his first appearance since winning the Triple Crown. He equalled the track record at the time by winning in 1:49 1/5.
On June 24, 1952, jockey Eddie Arcaro becomes the first American jockey to win 3,000 races.
After 1955, seating capacity was increased to 30,000 and parking facilities expanded to accommodate 15,000.
In 1960 a new paddock was unveiled.
In 1964, Arlington Park inherits the thoroughbred race dates of Washington Park, who is now exclusively running harness races.
In 1966, future Hall of Fame jockey Laffit Pincay Jr. gets his first American victory.
In 1968, the future Hall of Famer Dr. Fager wins the one-mile Washington Park Handicap in world record time of 1:32 1/5. He carried 143 pounds and held that record until 1998.
In 1968, Marje Everett sold the racetrack to Gulf & Western, remaining as director. In 1969, she was accused of bribing Illinois Governor Otto Kerner Jr. The alleged bribes were in the form of stock options in 1961 that Kerner bought at a reduced price and then sold in 1968 at a profit. Kerner was eventually convicted of mail fraud, but Everett denied at trial that she intended to bribe him, and the government never identified her as a briber.[8]
In June 1973, Arlington organized a race for three-year-olds, the Arlington Invitational, to lure Secretariat to the mid-west. Secretariat won easily and Arlington created the Secretariat Stakes, also for three-year-olds but on the turf, in his honor.[9]
In 1981 under the direction of track president Joseph Joyce Jr., Arlington was the home of the world's first million-dollar thoroughbred race: The Arlington Million. The result of that race is noted in bronze at the top of the paddock at Arlington, where a statue of jockey Bill Shoemaker riding John Henry to a come-from-behind victory over 40–1 longshot The Bart celebrates Thoroughbred racing's inaugural million-dollar race.
Arlington entered a new era in 1983 when Richard L. Duchossois led an Illinois investment group to purchase the track from its former owners and made a pledge to continue presenting championship racing. That was tested on July 31, 1985, when a small fire spread quickly out of control and completely destroyed the grandstand and clubhouse. Unsure of the future of Arlington, the meet was moved to Hawthorne Race Course. Yet it was announced that the Arlington Million would still be held at Arlington International. On August 25, 1985, they did just that by using temporary bleachers. Joyce resigned in 1986 after disagreements with Duchossois.[10] The track fully reopened in 1989 under a new name, Arlington International Racecourse.
In 1996, 34,000 fans jammed into Arlington to see the two-time Horse of the Year and future Hall of Famer Cigar tie the modern day record of 16 consecutive wins in the Arlington Citation Challenge.
Due to contract disputes, Arlington had no racing in 1998 and 1999.
In 2000, Arlington reopened after a two-year shutdown. In September of that year, Churchill Downs Incorporated completed its purchase of the track. In 2001, Arlington reopened as Arlington Park but returned to Arlington International Racecourse in 2013.[11]
Arlington hosted the 2002 Breeders' Cup World Thoroughbred Championships at their track.
In 2007 to promote safer racing, Arlington International Racecourse invested $11 million to install a synthetic racing surface called Polytrack which is still used today.[12] Do the Wave won the first race on the Polytrack on May 4. On May 11, Arlington debuts an alternate finish line at the 1/16 pole.
In 2016, Arlington debuted the Arlington Racing Club, an ownership group with the goal to garner interest in thoroughbred ownership.
On May 14, 2010, Lee DeWyze, a citizen of Mount Prospect, Illinois, and a contestant on American Idol, performed a concert at Arlington Park for approximately 41,000 fans. Also on May 14, Arlington is featured in an episode of Undercover Boss where Churchill Downs Inc. CEO Bill Carstanjen goes to Arlington and Calder Race Course.
A year later, on May 14, 2011, Haley Reinhart, of Wheeling, Illinois, also made the top 3 on American Idol. She, like DeWyze, had a hometown concert at the track for nearly 30,000 of her own fans and supporters.
Arlington was the first track to install a public-address system and employed the pioneering race caller Clem McCarthy to describe the action. It added the first electric totalizator which allowed a credible tote board and decreased time between races, in 1933. In 1936 it added a photo finish camera. It introduced the first electric starting gate in 1940 and the largest closed-circuit TV system in all of sports in 1967. In 1971, Arlington held the industry's first commercially sponsored race—the $100,000 Pontiac Grand Prix. On July 4, 1976, Arlington hosted the first races on a Sunday in Illinois.
While Arlington is credited in some circles[by whom?] with the introduction of trifecta wagering in 1971, the New York Racing Association first offered the bet a year earlier as "The Triple".
In August 2019, track owner Churchill Downs Inc. (CDI) announced that it would consider options to transfer racing away from Arlington Park after 2021. The announcement stemmed from the enactment of the Illinois Gaming Act, which provided for the legalization of sports betting and the construction of new casinos in Illinois. The law gave CDI the right to install up to 1,200 gaming positions, such as slot machines, at Arlington Park. However, CDI – which had acquired a majority stake of Rivers Casino in nearby Des Plaines earlier that year and had already announced plans to expand it – argued that the installation of gaming positions at Arlington would result in higher tax payments of up to 20% compared to nearby casinos because of contributions needed to fund horse racing purses.[13]
In February 2021, CDI announced plans to sell the entire Arlington Park property for redevelopment. CDI said it would also seek the transfer of Arlington's racing license to another track in the state, but committed to Arlington's race dates for 2021 (April 30 – September 25).[1] In response, the Illinois Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (which represents thoroughbred owners and trainers at both Arlington and Hawthorne) denounced CDI's decision, alleging that CDI "all but abandoned any meaningful commitment to Illinois racing" after their majority acquisition of Rivers Casino.[14]
In June 2021, the Chicago Bears announced they had submitted a bid to purchase the land for a potential new stadium to replace their longtime home of Soldier Field (where they have played since 1971).[15] Later in June 2021, the Village of Arlington Heights formally approved overlay zoning district for a large-scale football stadium at the site.[16]
The last race was held on September 25, 2021 with a 9 race event. The winner of the final race held at Arlington (which was named "The Luxembourg" after the winner of the first race at the track), was Sister Ruler. The final day was capped off with a showing of a documentary on the fire at the track and a fireworks show.[citation needed]
On September 29, 2021 the Chicago Bears announced they would purchase the property for $197.2 million.[17] If a stadium is approved and built, it would be the second horse racing course to be replaced with an NFL venue in recent years, as Inglewood, California's Hollywood Park (once owned by CDI) was replaced by SoFi Stadium, the home of the Los Angeles Chargers and Los Angeles Rams. On October 27, 2021 the Bears confirmed that they are not pursuing horse racing but had no further details on their plans for the property.[18]
On March 16, 2022, the Chicago Bears announced that they have selected MANICA Architecture to help plan the new NFL stadium.[19][20]
The Chicago Bears completed the purchase in February of 2023.[3]
The track had a one-mile and one-eighth dirt oval and a one-mile turf oval. There was stabling on the backstretch for over 2,000 horses.
Arlington replaced its dirt course with a synthetic track prior to the opening of the 2007 season.
Arlington's live racing season formerly ran from the first Friday in May to the second to last Saturday in September. Since 2001 (up until its final season of 2021) races at Arlington had been announced by John G. Dooley.
The following stakes were held at Arlington in 2019.
Grade I
Grade III
Listed
Former Races
While the Chicago Bears’ very public bid to purchase Arlington Park has been grabbing headlines, far quieter acquisition negotiations have been taking place regarding another significant parcel of land associated with the race track’s one-time owners.
The Duchossois family — whose late patriarch, Richard Duchossois, purchased Arlington Park in 1983 — has announced the sale of its 246.5-acre Hill ‘N Dale Farm South property to Barrington-based Citizens for Conservation.
With the purchase, Citizens for Conservation will create the Hill ‘N Dale Preserve, ensuring the land’s protection as open space in perpetuity.
“This property’s high conservation value, coupled with CFC’s strong history of delivering quality restoration results, will have far-reaching impacts for the entire Barrington-area community, as well as the entire Northern Illinois region,” Kathleen Leitner, Citizen for Conservation board president, said in a statement.
The purchase was enabled by a $4.9 million grant from the Illinois Clean Energy Community Foundation, the largest such grant awarded for a single parcel purchase, Citizens for Conservation said. The nonprofit is aiming to raise an additional $5 million for ecological restoration and to seed an endowment for the property’s ongoing upkeep.
Preservation of the Hill ‘N Dale acreage is a coup for conservationists. The long-coveted site includes more than 4,000 linear feet of the pristine Spring Creek (part of the Fox River watershed) and is located near other significant nature preserves, providing connectivity along a greenway corridor for native plants and wildlife.
“The potential for this property and what I’ve learned about the connection to the greater good of the Illinois and Midwestern conservation objectives is astounding,” said Kim Duchossois, who helped facilitate the farm’s sale.
Among the conservation priorities will be restoration of the land’s native hydrology to allow for increased surface water infiltration and expanded wetlands.
A concept map of the site shows plans for a mix of prairie, savanna and marsh habitat, which will support native plant and aquatic communities, grassland birds (such as Bobolink, Bittern, and Henslow’s sparrows), and wildlife that originally occupied the land, including endangered species such as the rusty patched bumble bee.
Aerial view of the Hill 'N Dale farm in its current form, alongside a restoration plan. (Courtesy of Citizens for Conservation)
One element of the site that won’t be altered: the property’s white exterior fences. Those will be kept intact in acknowledgement of their iconic status within the community, according to Citizens for Conservation.
Hill ‘N Dale Preserve represents the largest acquisition in Citizen for Conservation’s 50-year history, bringing its portfolio up to 14 preserves spanning 777 acres in Lake, Cook and McHenry counties.
It’s another big swing by a small nonprofit, following on the heels of the purchase of the 300-acre Thompson Road Farm by The Land Conservancy of McHenry Country. Both have answered the call of the state’s “30 by 30” pledge to conserve 30% of land and water resources by the year 2030.
“This incredibly important acquisition is fulfilling CFC’s mission of saving living space for living things through protection, restoration and stewardship,” Leitner said.
Contact Patty Wetli: @pattywetli | (773) 509-5623 | [email protected]
