The Chicago Bears are choosing between three potential sites in Hammond to move forward with their new stadium, according to Mayor Tom McDermott.
McDermott has ambitious plans to get shovels in the ground this summer, but first, the team has to choose where the stadium would go. He hopes that announcement will happen in a few weeks. A site near Wolf Lake has largely been the focus of conversations thus far, but it isn’t the only choice.
The mayor said in an interview with NBC Chicago he could not disclose where the other sites are located.
“We want to make it so that when there’s not a game, there’s still attractions to go to, and it’s a blank slate here in Hammond. The Bears are going to be telling us what they want, and we’re going to make it happen,” McDermott said.
The go-getter attitude caught the attention of other two professional sports teams, who’ve also expressed interest in relocating to Northwest Indiana. Phil Taillon, the president and CEO of the South Shore Convention & Visitor Authority said neither is a football team nor a Chicago team.
“It shows us that we did a good job throughout this process, that Indiana proved that we’re a pro-business environment state, that we are not scared to step up when it comes to incentives that make sense on getting a project done,” Taillon said.
The Bears project would span at least 300 acres, with the stadium itself requiring between 60 and 110 acres. Businesses would be acquired through eminent domain, but McDermott said no homes would be impacted. He also said there are not any plans at this time to move the Bears’ practice facility to Hammond, with that facility currently located in Lake Forest.
The Indiana Welcome Center also plans on selling Hammond Bears merchandise soon, despite the fact that the team does not plan to change its name.
“This is going to be a multi-billion dollar investment. It’s going to completely transform that entire area. I think I’ve heard people call it its own little city when it’s all said and done,” Taillon said.
Illinois could still find a way to keep the team, but that would likely require a special session.
“We didn’t set the timeline in Indiana. The Bears did, and we met their timeline. Illinois did not, and they had plenty of opportunities,” McDermott said.
McDermott is moving full-steam ahead, even talking about changing Hammond’s city logo, inspired by Bourbonnais, Illinois, which used to be where the Bears’ practice facility was.
“Bourbonnais embraced the Bears logo. They put it on the water towers. Everywhere you went in Bourbonnais, you’d see the Bears logo. I definitely am interested in that in Hammond: changing the city logo to incorporate home of the Chicago Bears into it,” McDermott said.
