The relationship between the Bears and the city of Chicago will end in the near future.
The Indiana House Ways and Means Committee on Thursday approved a bill to create the Northwest Indiana Stadium Authority to begin funding the Bears’ stadium, passing 24-0. The Bears are considering a trip across state lines to Hammond, Indiana, which borders Chicago.
“The passage of SB 27 will mark the most meaningful step forward in our stadium planning efforts to date,” the team said in a statement. “We are committed to completing the remaining site-specific due diligence necessary to support our vision of building a world-class stadium near the Wolf Lake area of ​​Hammond, Indiana.”
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In a dramatic twist, however, the Bears made no mention of Illinois or the city of Chicago in their statement, even though lawmakers in their current home state are working with the team. The Illinois House Revenue and Finance Committee is scheduled to hold a hearing Thursday on a bill that would try to move the process forward. Still, just one day before they released a statement praising Indiana lawmakers, the team asked that the hearing be adjourned for “further adjustments.”
“This morning we were surprised to see a statement praising Indiana and ignoring Illinois,” Matt Hill, a spokesman for Gov. JB Pritzker, said in a post on X.
This article originally appeared on Touchdown Wire: Drama unfolds as Chicago Bears relocation talk heats up