Bears board votes to advance Hammond stadium plan

The Chicago Bears have taken a significant step toward potentially relocating to Indiana after the team’s board of directors voted to advance a stadium development project in Hammond. The vote, taken Thursday and announced Friday, marks the first time the franchise’s board has formally voted on a specific stadium site, though the exact location in Hammond has yet to be selected.

In a joint statement, Bears Chairman George McCaskey and President and CEO Kevin Warren said they believe a world-class stadium project in Hammond would transform the region, connecting Northwest Indiana to Chicago and delivering new opportunities for residents and businesses. The decision follows more than a year of negotiations and comes just days after Illinois lawmakers concluded their spring legislative session without approving a measure aimed at keeping the team in the state.

That failed Illinois legislation would have allowed for the creation of municipal stadium authorities, a framework supporters said could have provided property tax certainty for a proposed stadium development in Arlington Heights, Illinois. The Bears have been evaluating both the Arlington Heights and Hammond sites, with team...