Chicago Bears: Indiana tax increase idea could doom stadium project

The Chicago Bears appeared to be gaining momentum in June for building their new stadium project in Hammond, Indiana, after the Illinois General Assembly failed to pass a megaprojects bill before the close of the spring session in May.

Now that the ball is in Indiana’s court, some local officials are worried about tax increases hitting their regions to pay for the stadium in Northwest Indiana.

Per Indiana Capital Chronicle, the state’s stadium offer, which has already been approved by lawmakers and signed by Gov. Mike Braun in February, would be paid for via a mix of new local taxes in Lake and Porter counties combined with a yet-undecided pool of a $700 million fund from the Indiana Toll Road’s private operator.

Indiana plans to use $1 billion in taxpayer funds to support infrastructure projects around the stadium and would include nearby retail, restaurants, and residential building.

Porter County would be expected to levy a 1 percent restaurant tax, with the funds going to the stadium in Lake County. Porter County borders Lake County to the west and includes the cities of Valparaiso and Portage.

Porter County Commissioner Jim Biggs told Indiana Capital Chronicle that he remains opposed to imposing the restaurant tax in order to pay for the stadium project in Lake County.

“I think there’s actually a negligible percentile of Porter County residents that support creating a food-and-beverage tax in our county and putting that money in an envelope and sending it off to Hammond,” Biggs told the Indiana Capital Chronicle. “We have our own issues here that need to be addressed.”

Will the Chicago Bears move to Indiana?

More News: Chicago Bears: Illinois appears back in play for new stadium deal

Braun isn’t troubled by Biggs’ reluctance to institute the tax and believes local leaders will fall in line once Indiana is closer to starting the project.

Using local taxes to pay for NFL stadiums won’t be popular with officials because their constituents don’t want to pay for these projects. This is going to be a hurdle for Indiana and the Bears.

In the meantime, the Bears remain in play to remain in Illinois. Per Politico, the team is having discussions with Illinois lawmakers “behind the scenes.” The Bears are working on drafting their own legislation for the state to pass

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