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Comment on Bears stadium economic impact reports reveal that economic impact reports aren’t worth much by Ulysses
['Neil Demause']
Comments for Field of Schemes
Arlington Heights yesterday released not one but two economic impact reports on the village’s proposed Chicago Bears stadium: One commissioned by the team and carried out by consultants HR&A, and one commissioned by the village and carried out by consultants Hunden Partners.
Such reports do not have a glorious history, so how do these stack up?
Unless Bears ownership plans on spontaneously generating new Illinoisans, at least some of the spending at the new project will inevitably be cannibalized from elsewhere in the state.
Hosting a Super Bowl, reports HR&A, “would generate an additional $570 million in statewide economic impact and support close to 3,800 permanent jobs” — that’s right, permanent jobs from a one-week, one-time event, sure would like a methodology footnote on that one, but sadly none is forthcoming.
Hunden’s report is just a three-page summary, so its findings are even more abbreviated than HR&A’s: The stadium project would “support” 5,400+ full-time equivalent jobs and $510.1 million in “net new tax impact” ($15.1m per year) over 40 years.