P.M. BRIEFING : Sears Offered $104 Million to Stay

The city and state have offered a $104 million-plus incentive package to keep Sears, Roebuck & Co. in the Chicago area, but the deal may have to be sweetened by up to $72 million more.

The Chicago Sun-Times, quoting an official familiar with the negotiations, today reported that the present offer to move the company from downtown Chicago to O’Hare International Airport includes a 12-year $40-million property tax abatement and an agreement to designate a site near O’Hare as an Illinois enterprise zone.

But the source said the offer may not be good enough to prevent the state’s largest employer from moving the Sears Merchandise Group to the Sun Belt.

The newspaper said negotiations aimed at keeping 6,700 Sears jobs in Illinois hinge on the city’s demand that Sears pay “market value” for 140 acres of land adjacent to the proposed 80-acre O’Hare site.