Cubs unveil $500M Wrigley Field renovation plan
The Chicago Cubs and the city have agreed on details of a $500 million facelift for Wrigley Field, including an electronic video screen that is nearly three times as large as the one currently atop the centerfield bleachers of the 99-year-old ballpark.
Under terms of the agreement, the Cubs would also be able to increase the number of night games at Wrigley Field from 30 to 40 — or nearly half the games played there each season. They would give Cubs chairman Tom Ricketts the ability to renovate the second-oldest park in the major leagues, boost business and perhaps make baseball's most infamous losers competitive again.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel hailed what the two sides called a "framework" agreement in a joint statement issued Sunday night, noting that it includes no taxpayer funding. That had been one of the original requests of the Ricketts family in a long-running renovation dispute that at times involved everything from cranky ballpark neighbors to ward politics and even the re-election campaign of President Barack Obama.
"This framework allows the Cubs to restore the Friendly Confines (of Wrigley) and pursue their economic goals, while respecting the rights and quality of life of its neighbors," Emanuel said.
http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130415/sports/704159839?interstitial=1
I love Wrigley Field and I hope they don't change its look or the way it plays. Saying that I hate the rooftops and their owners. They are interesting especially in years when the Cubs are great but they owners bitch and moan like the actually have any impact on the Cubs ownership. Right now the Cubs get a certain percentage of their ticket sales but I'm guessing a video screen will bring in way more money with advertisement. No real fans sit on the rooftops, a real fan wants to be in the stadium as close as possible to the field.
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