Plainfield-Oswego Democratic State Rep. Harry Benton says he did not appreciate comments made by Chicago Bears President and Chief Executive Officer Kevin Warren this week about expanding the search for a new Bears stadium site after lawmakers reportedly told the team that any stadium legislation would not be heard in 2026. Benton says lawmakers have been working with the Bears on policy involving their Arlington Heights proposal for years but want to make sure things are done effectively.

"The Arlington Heights deal seemed like it was kind of a done deal that they were going to leave Chicago, but we did work on a kind of a tax freeze. So it wasn’t costing anything. They just were essentially freezing their property taxes, which would stem new development and also create a whole new economy there in Arlington Heights. Now they’re putting out the letter that they wanna go to northwest Indiana, and it seems like a power play that they’ve played with for a while now."

In the letter, which was sent to Bears season ticket holders this week, Warren says since lawmakers do not seem to share the "sense of urgency and appreciation for public partnership" that the Bears do, their stadium search continues across the Chicagoland area, including northwest Indiana. Benton says those comments have been used as threats to negotiate before but come off as false promises.

Benton believes that the Bears and lawmakers will come to an agreement on the original Arlington Heights proposal at some point this year but says there are other options.