Overview
- In an open letter, president Kevin Warren said state leadership told the team its Arlington Heights plan will not be a 2026 priority, triggering a wider search that now includes Northwest Indiana.
- The Bears maintain they are not asking for taxpayer money to build the stadium, instead requesting support for roads, utilities and site work alongside predictable property tax terms; a consultant report pegged related infrastructure at about $855 million.
- Arlington Heights remains the organization’s preferred and, in its view, only viable site within Cook County, with the team pledging more than $2 billion in private investment for a domed stadium and surrounding development.
- Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s office rebuked the cross-border suggestion, and Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle said recent talks to keep the team in the county make the Indiana turn disappointing.
- Media reports cite Hammond and Gary as potential Indiana options, though no site has been chosen and the Bears insist the broader search is not a leverage play.