Bears relocation at ’50-50′ as team moves on to new site with Indiana’s $1bn gamble questioned

The battle for the Chicago Bears continues to rage on.

For months, the $8.2 billion NFL franchise has appeared set on a cross-state relocation from Illinois to Indiana.

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Geotechnical surveys have begun around Wolf Lake, Hammond, where three potential sites are being evaluated for the new home field.

The Bears made clear their intention to build a $5bn domed facility and mixed-use entertainment district around 16 miles south of historic Soldier Field, which sits on the Near South Side of Chicago.

Concerns, though, have arisen over how the state of Indiana will recoup the massive $1bn investment they are offering to the team to get the project across the finish line.

Questions over Indiana bill to finance new Bears stadium

Earlier this year, governor Mike Braun signed a bill aimed at luring the Bears across state lines, which established a Northwest Indiana Stadium Authority to finance, construct and lease a new stadium.

According to NBC5 Chicago, it features a one percent hike on food and beverage taxes in both Lake and Porter counties, which is expected to generate between $12 million and $18m per year in revenue.

There is also a proposal included to double Lake County’s hotel tax from five to 10 percent, and a 12 percent admissions tax will also be assessed on tickets purchased to events at any new facility.

New taxes have been met with resistance from some local officials and residents, but Professor Deborah Carroll from the University of Illinois-Chicago’s Government Finance Research Center believes they’re key to ensuring revenues are high enough to justify the investment.

She told NBC5: “All of the research on stadium financing really suggests that it’s that whole experience that’s needed to make sure that those revenues that are tied to the activities of going to football games materialize.”

Despite the worry, Gov. Braun continues to express public confidence in the project.

“I’d say we’re in the red zone,” he said last week.

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“I’ve done so much real estate in my career. Until you ink it, it’s not done, but it’s moved a long distance in a short period of time.”

The door, though, remains ajar for Illinois to sweep back in.

Bears ’50-50′ to stay in state, senator claims

Despite the Bears suggesting earlier this year that they have ‘exhausted every opportunity’ to stay in Chicago, no site in Indiana has officially been named.

It has looked likely the team will move across state lines, but as Gov. Braun has said, the deal is not yet done.

In fact, one Illinois lawmaker ‌thinks the battle to keep the franchise is far from over.

State senator Sue ​Rezin said Tuesday that she ​considers the stadium search a ⁠close race, despite the Bears’ board approving a proposed development ​in Hammond five weeks ago.

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“I would give it ​a 50-50 chance to have the Bears stay ‌in ⁠Illinois,” Sen. Rezin said during a legislative update.

The ​deputy minority leader of the Illinois Senate added that lawmakers are still working toward a solution that ​could make an in-state project viable.

Sen. Rezin’s comments indicate another potential twist in the Bears stadium drama, as the wait for any official confirmation on a new stadium site from the team drags on.

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