The Chicago Bears have reiterated that they are considering Arlington Heights and Hammond, Indiana, as potential sites for their new stadium.
Hammond in the Running as Chicago Option Emerges
The team stated that since September, the only site in Cook County under consideration has been in Arlington Heights. The Bears are also considering a stadium proposal in Hammond, Indiana. A decision between the two is expected later this spring or early summer.
Democratic state Sen. Bill Cunningham of Chicago said that he and some legislative colleagues learned that the Bears had expressed a willingness to revisit a lakefront stadium with Mayor Brandon Johnson’s office. This was before the mayor’s team told Chicago-based lawmakers about that conversation.
Cunningham added that the Bears reaching out to the city in recent weeks to talk about the lakefront has breathed life into the mayor’s efforts to keep the team in Chicago.
Chicago Stadium Idea Stalls Negotiations
Cunningham said talk of resurrecting a Chicago stadium has created a roadblock in ongoing discussions among lawmakers. These lawmakers are trying to meet a May 31 deadline to hammer out a deal before the end of the spring legislative session that could compel the Bears to move to Arlington Heights. Cunningham said the Chicago stadium idea has become a catalyst for lawmakers who have expressed “substantial opposition” to the current negotiations over helping the team move to a suburb.
This sticking point in negotiations comes a few weeks after Johnson and others in the city administration visited Springfield and discussed with lawmakers the mayor’s desire to keep the Bears in Chicago.
Before the Bears released their statement, Cunningham predicted the team “will still say this is a binary choice. And they will say that there is no Chicago plan, and there isn’t.”
Cunningham said, “There is no concrete plan from the city on the table right now. But by virtue of the fact that the Bears reached out to the city in recent weeks to talk about the lakefront, they have breathed life into the mayor’s efforts.”
Bears Firm on Arlington Heights and Hammond
The Bears pushed back on the idea that they are open to building a new stadium in Chicago. They said that they have been clear with the city of Chicago and state leaders that there are only two viable stadium locations under consideration: Arlington Heights and Hammond.
A representative from Johnson’s office did not return requests for comment.
The developments also come as Gov. JB Pritzker and Johnson have been bickering over the stadium deal.