Hammond Mayor: State of Indiana Took Care of Us in Bears Stadium Deal

Hammond Mayor Tom McDermott Jr. updated the city council on some of the details in the recently approved Bears stadium project during a Monday meeting.

Aerial View of Hammond, Indiana during Summer — Source: Jacob Boomsma / Getty

HAMMOND, Ind. — The Chicago Bears’ name won’t change, but where they play their home games will.

At the Hammond City Council meeting Monday night, Mayor Tom McDermott Jr. said Indiana Gov. Mike Braun was massive for them getting the Bears to approve of a stadium project in Hammond.

“I know a lot of people over the years, myself included, who have said that Indianapolis doesn’t pay attention to Hammond, Indianapolis doesn’t pay attention to northwest Indiana,” McDermott said. “To have the Bears choose Hammond for a multi-billion dollar project, the state of Indiana took care of Hammond.”

Even after criticizing the governor, McDermott said he appreciated Braun offering billions of dollars to get the Bears to relocate across state lines to his city.

“Bipartisanship is alive and well in Indiana,” Mayor McDermott said.

According to McDermott, there was plenty of criticism from those in the Chicago media about the “vague wording” in the announcement from the Bears last week when they said they were choosing Hammond to build their new stadium. He’s not criticizing the announcement.

“I know why it was vague, and I can’t talk about that right now, but the Bears are coming to Indiana,” said McDermott.

When asked how much land would be needed for a potential Chicago Bears stadium development, Mayor McDermott told city council members that the entire project will have at least 300 acres made available, with the stadium itself requiring at least 60 acres.

Within the last year, the city also cut the ribbon on a $1 billion train expansion that goes through the heart of Hammond. McDermott believes that it will benefit the city greatly while the NFL team is in the process of moving over.

“There are hundreds of millions of dollars of infrastructure that’s going to be done to improve the traffic patterns, improve the drainage, improve the parking,” McDermott added. It’s beyond your wildest dreams.”

McDermott, a Democrat, has been mayor of Hammond since January 1, 2004. He said he’s happy with what he’s seen that the Bears are bringing to the city so far.

“The Chicago Bears chose Hammond, Indiana because they see what I have said for years: Hammond is a successful city of opportunity and possibility, an excellent choice for such a significant investment.

The city of Hammond and the entirety of Northwest Indiana will benefit from this transformative investment.

I am proud to have partnered with our state leaders to secure this win; I’m grateful to Gov. Mike Braun, Speaker Todd Huston, Sen Ryan Mishler and our local legislators who pushed this deal over the goal line!

#BearDown Northwest Indiana”