Days before hosting their most important NFL game in years at Soldier Field against the rival Green Bay Packers, the Chicago Bears are reaching out to their passionate fan base about relocating their home – this time possibly to Indiana.
In a letter Wednesday, Dec. 17, Bears President and CEO Kevin Warren said with efforts to secure public funding in Illinois stalled the organization would consider locations for a new stadium away from the preferred Arlington Heights site and outside of Cook County. He said this includes northwest Indiana.
The Bears purchased the site of the former Arlington horse racing site in 2023 for nearly $200 million and announced plans to build a 60,000-seat stadium with private funds. But according to a report in the Chicago Sun Times, the team said it currently doesn’t make feasible financial sense without legislation for the Bears to discuss a lower property tax rate in Arlington Heights.
Warren said in the letter to fans that the Arlington Heights site remains “the best and only path forward in Cook County, given there are no other viable alternatives.”
But he also wrote the club would explore additional opportunities including those outside of the state.
“We need to expand our search and critically evaluate opportunities throughout the wider Chicagoland region, including Northwest Indiana,” Warren said in the letter. “This is not about leverage. We spent years trying to build a new home in Cook County. We invested significant time and resources evaluating multiple sites and rationally decided on Arlington Heights.”
Moving the Bears out of Illinois? It seems as out of place as putting ketchup on a Chicago-style hot dog.
“We have not asked for state taxpayer dollars to build the stadium at Arlington Park,” Warren wrote. “We asked only for a commitment to essential local infrastructure (roads, utilities, and site improvements) which is more than typical for projects of this size. Additionally, we sought reasonable property tax certainty to secure financing. We listened to state leadership and relied on their direction and guidance, yet our efforts have been met with no legislative partnership.”
This is certainly not the first time the Bears have reconsidered a stadium plan after struggling to come to any type of agreement with the city and state legislature. The Bears originally explored building a stadium on the multiple Chicago lakefront sites in addition to others outside the city limits.
Warren additionally claimed the Bears “have been told directly by state leadership, our project will not be a priority in 2026.”
Meanwhile, it appears Indiana has already been looking to lure another professional sports team near the state line.
According to a story in the Indianapolis Star, the Indiana House passed a bill on April 30 that established the northwest Indiana professional sports development commission. It “authorizes the commission to prepare a comprehensive master plan for building the facilities and other infrastructure necessary for attracting and developing one or more professional sports franchises in northwest Indiana.”
Soldier Field opened in 1924 and is the oldest stadium in the NFL. It became the home of the Bears in 1971. The team planned to break ground on the stadium site in Arlington Heights this year, but with just days left in December and no agreement with state officials, the Bears are once again exploring other options while in the midst of their best season in recent memory. A win over the Packers Saturday night would give the Bears a 1½ game lead in the NFC North with two games to play, while a Packers victory would vault Green Bay into first place.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Chicago Bears say they will explore Indiana for new stadium site
