By this point, Chicago Bears fans have learned not to get suckered in by press conferences involving team president Kevin Warren. Too many times, there have been expectations that he might finally reveal something notable about the team’s stadium situation. Every time, he has offered nothing, hidden behind constant assurances that the organization is close to a breakthrough. He’s been saying it for two years now. People have caught onto his game. That is why there wasn’t much buzz when he and team owner George McCaskey met with the media ahead of the Bears’ preseason opener against Cleveland.
For the most part, the assumptions were correct. Warren offered very little regarding the ongoing talks with Illinois and Indiana. No final decision has been made. The Bears remain focused on Hammond, Indiana, while they’ve stayed in contact with Springfield about resuming talks. More of the same.
However, Warren did manage to slip one interesting nugget of information into the useless fodder. It involved the building location. Hammond has two sites that the Bears have been looking at. One is at Wolf Lake, and the other is at Lost Marsh Golf Course. After weighing the two against each other, it seems the organization is now considering merging the two together.
That would encompass a massive land plot of over 400 acres, dwarfing the 326 in Arlington Heights.
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That or Kevin Warren seeks a creative solution to a big problem.
By far the most pressing issue with the Hammond location is that much of the land at both Wolf Lake and Lost Marsh is environmentally protected. The Defense Logistics Agency of the U.S. Government is the tenant and holds rights to that property until 2050. This meant that if the Bears wanted to make anything happen, they would have to go through the courts, which would be time-consuming and expensive. Also, based on public statements from the government, likely not successful.
If you remove the land owned by the DLA, the property for each location shrinks considerably. That creates a big problem for the Bears, who wanted a bigger plot of land so they could build the stadium and the immediate area into a prime location for fans and businesses. Settling for maybe 100 acres at either location would be a major disappointment. However, what is one way to circumvent that? Merge the two together. Suddenly, you have plenty of space to work with.
Is this enough to force a decision?
Indiana certainly hopes so. They’ve been proactive for months in their push to convince the Bears that this is a great move for all parties. McCaskey even admitted that Indiana has been far more present in discussions, constantly working to find solutions, compared to Illinois. This property merger idea feels like something the state would’ve put forward as a way to avoid losing momentum after the government’s decision. They no doubt hope this approach can nudge Kevin Warren and ownership into a definitive announcement.
No such luck. At least not yet. Warren made it clear the process is ongoing. No decisions are made. Research continues. The Bears want to make sure they have all the information before committing. Many believe this is just more stalling tactics as they try to pry more concessions from Illinois. Either way, fans aren’t being duped anymore. After five years, they’ve realized this process won’t end anytime soon.
