The Illinois Sports Facilities Authority (ISFA) is a government entity created by the Illinois General Assembly in 1987 for the purpose of constructing and renovating sports stadiums for professional sports teams in the State of Illinois. ISFA is the owner and developer of Guaranteed Rate Field, home of the 2005 World Champion Chicago White Sox.
One of ISFA’s top priorities is giving back to the Chicago Metropolitan Area. Our purpose is to maintain Guaranteed Rate Field as a first-class Major League Baseball (MLB) facility and the venue of choice for Chicago concerts/events, and to serve as a good neighbor to the surrounding communities. ISFA regularly works with charities who use our facilities, such as the Conference and Learning Center, as well as adjacent parking lots. ISFA also has a ticket program where it, at its discretion, donates regular season White Sox tickets to local, national and international nonprofit organizations. The Authority hosts thousands of people at various events, including 5K runs and Police and Fire baseball games.
The Chicago Lakefront Development project, which included significant restoration to Soldier Field, was financed by ISFA through the issuance of municipal bonds backed by an existing two percent Authority hotel tax. ISFA provided the public contribution, a total of $406 million of the overall $606 million required.
In 2008, ISFA unveiled the first environmentally-friendly parking lot to be used by a major league sports facility. The new permeable pavement parking lot, which spans more than six acres or the equivalent to the length of approximately four and half football fields, is the largest permeable pavement parking lot in the country. The environmentally-friendly lot reduces the amount of water entering Chicago’s stormwater system, improves overall water quality, and helps reduce the urban heat island effect.
If you are interested in learning more about ISFA, please contact us.