The Chicago Bears are continuing on the tumultuous grind to acquire a long-term stadium solution, and CEO Kevin Warren was brutally honest at a community meeting on the state of the search.

“We do need a new home for the Chicago Bears. We have to figure out if Arlington Heights is legitimately a viable option or is it not,” Warren said. “This has nothing to do with personal feelings. This is strictly business. And I just want to make sure that we're all on the same page and figure out if this is something that will work.”

The Bears began demolition on the Arlington Heights site last week, working to get underway on a potential site for the next stadium. They purchased the property back in February, and will be trying to overcome tax disputes with local officials, per Christopher Placek of the Chicago Daily Herald.

Three local school districts in the Arlington Heights area have valued the property at $197 million, after it was initially valued at $33 million in 2021. This increases the Bears annual tax commitment to almost $8 million, far more than they are willing to pay.

The new Mayor of Chicago is looking to entice the team to stay in the city limits, but that result seems unlikely due to a variety of limiting factors.

It remains to be seen if and when the Bears can complete plans for the home of the future, but it certainly looks like the new CEO will be doing everything in his power to negotiate a settlement with the Arlington Heights property.