McCook Mayor Terrance Carr’s renewed pitch to land the Chicago Bears generated far more than likes and shares when the Desplaines Valley News posted about his 150-acre entertainment complex this week.
The Facebook post reached 84,200 people and sparked an ongoing, 127-comment debate that revealed what residents actually think about the plan: roughly half are skeptical, about a third are enthusiastic, and many are asking questions the official pitch hasn’t answered.
The biggest question bantered about on Facebook: Can you build a stadium on a filled-in quarry?
Dozens of residents raised the same doubt. “But McCook is a big ditch,” one wrote. “Isn’t that a big hole in the ground?” another asked.
But skepticism wasn’t universal. Some residents with ties to the site offered a different view. One said the fill has been “compacted in stages so it could be built on.” Another who works near the quarry offered his own account of the site’s condition. A third recalled a similar quarry-fill project that took decades to settle.
The debate reflected a deeper divide: residents genuinely unsure whether the engineering works, with no clear answer from the village.
Traffic and transit were the second-biggest concern in the comments. A long thread pitted residents against each other over whether the site could realistically be served by public transportation. Some cited the distance to the nearest Metra stop and weekend service gaps. Others said it could work with proper planning.
School funding worried some readers. One resident argued a tax-exempt lease would hurt local school districts—a claim that sparked debate about which districts actually serve McCook.
Environmental concerns surfaced too. Residents asked about odor from the nearby Metropolitan Water Reclamation District plant and old sludge pits in the area.
About 30 percent of readers were enthusiastic. “Make it happen!” “Sign me up.” “Go Terry!” One who grew up nearby said it “would have been awesome to walk to a Bears game.”
The “keep the Bears in Illinois” sentiment ran strong. Most commenters preferred McCook to Indiana, though a few argued Indiana offered better options.
Some readers suggested alternatives: Ford City, Bolingbrook, the old Chicago site.