The Bears are focusing their stadium efforts on Arlington Heights. The team acknowledged that fact in a Friday afternoon statement, indicating that the Bears made strides in an effort to build a new facility in the Chicago suburb.

“Over the last few months, we have made significant progress with the leaders in Arlington Heights,” the statement said, “and look forward to continuing to work with state and local leaders on making a transformative economic development project for the region a reality.”

The Chicago Tribune was first to report the news.

This represented a marked shift over the last 14 months. Bears president and CEO Kevin Warren said the Bears were focused on the Chicago lakefront, close to where Solider Field sits, at the 2024 NFL owners meetings.

Warren said at this year’s owners meetings that the Bears were focused on Chicago and Arlington Heights. During that conversation with Bears beat reporters, it become clear the suburban route was attractive.

Bears ownership purchased a parcel of land in the city, where a horseracing track and off-track betting facility used to be, back in 2023. That complex has been razed and Warren said on April 2 that the site is “pad ready” and can accommodate new construction. The Bears have also achieved property tax certainty, another attraction to build there.

“Arlington Heights is, I keep going back to it, it’s an absolutely fantastic piece of land,” Warren said in April. “I thank George and his family, for having the foresight. The McCaskey family, led by George, to have the foresight to purchase that land in Arlington Heights, but to be able to find 326 acres that close to a wonderful city is difficult to do. I don’t know if it exists anywhere in the country.”

That’s why Friday’s news wasn’t a shock. There’s a far clearer path to stadium construction in Arlington Heights, as compared options on or near the Chicago lakefront.

Warren has said Bears plan to privately finance the stadium, though public funding would be used for infrastructure projects. They would also own land surrounding the stadium itself.

According to the Chicago Tribune, the project is contingent on state “megaproject” legislation that allows for negotiation on financing with local governments. There are still hurdles to clear before Warren can realize his longstanding promise of putting shovels in the ground this calendar year, but there’s a clearer path to stadium construction in Arlington Heights.

New mayor James Tinaglia said that he met with Warren before taking his oath of office. Tinaglia supports a Bears stadium project but said last month, per CBS Chicago that there’s work to be done and that he wants a project where “everybody wins financially on this.”