While questions remain about where the Chicago Bears will build a new stadium, the team reaffirmed Friday that its practice facility and corporate headquarters — Halas Hall — will remain in Lake Forest.
The clarification came after Hammond Mayor Thomas McDermott said during a Thursday news conference that Hammond’s Northwest Indiana stadium proposal includes a practice facility.
“That’s absolutely correct,” McDermott said when asked whether the proposal contemplates football operations in addition to a stadium. “They are talking about everything.”
Following those remarks, the Bears reiterated that Halas Hall will remain in Lake Forest, even as Northwest Indiana and Arlington Heights remain under consideration for a future stadium site.
The team had previously addressed the issue in December after Bears President Kevin Warren sent a letter to season ticket holders expressing interest in the Northwest Indiana location. At that time, team spokesman Scott Hagel said that regardless of where a new stadium is ultimately built, Halas Hall would stay in Lake Forest.
The Bears have maintained a presence in Lake Forest since 1975, operating at Halas Hall on the campus of Lake Forest College beginning in 1979 before moving to the current 38-acre Halas Hall complex in Conway Park in 1997.
Lake Forest City Manager Jason Wicha issued a statement following McDermott’s press conference.
“The City is not involved in any of the ongoing discussions and there is no indication that the Bears are giving any consideration to leaving the City of Lake Forest,” Wicha said.
In a subsequent interview, Wicha added that because Halas Hall is privately owned property, the Bears would not be under any formal obligation to notify city officials if plans were ever to change.
The current Halas Hall facility has been expanded twice since opening and has served as the site of the team’s summer training camp since 2020, with practices opening to the public beginning in 2021.
Daniel I. Dorfman is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.