The team announced Friday that they would accept the state’s offer to build a stadium in Hammond.
Bears Board of Directors Chairman George McCaskey released a statement, first reported by the Chicago Sun Times, saying the stadium site in Indiana is “to be selected.”
The Illinois General Assembly ended its Spring session without passing its version of a bill aimed to keep the team in Chicago. Lawmakers, including JB Pritzker, said they worried about spending money on a new stadium as residents struggled with affordability.
Indiana lawmakers passed legislation earlier this year worth $1 billion dollars to incentivize the team to come.
Speaker of the House Todd Huston led the effort to pass that legislation. He said it’s a major win for Indiana.
“We’re stable. We get things done. We support big things in Indiana and this is certainly one of them,” Huston said.
And Huston said the deal they struck means Indiana doesn’t have to worry about questions of affordability.
“The economic benefits will be for all people for affordability all around that area,” he said. “The new jobs that will be created, the development that will come, the profile that will come to Hammond and northwest Indiana. This is invaluable.”
In a statement, Governor Mike Braun called on Hoosiers to welcome the Chicago Bears.
Contact Government Reporter Benjamin Thorp at bthorp@wfyi.org
