01-23-2009, 04:04 AM
<!--quoteo-->QUOTE <!--quotec-->Landmark ordinances will prohibit too many changes to Wrigley, but fans should expect some kind of face lift in the coming years.
"We want to see this [deal] finished," Cubs Chairman Crane Kenney said at last weekend's Cubs Convention. "It hasn't distracted us much from our mission. We have a lot of things we want to do, what we call 'Wrigley 2014,' which are the plans for the outside design and all the things we want to get done, and you can't do it without an owner to help direct you."
The year 2014 is the 100th anniversary of Wrigley, a season that will be celebrated no matter who the owner is. The Cubs have big plans for the concourse behind home plate and other areas they believe need updating. Last March at spring training, Kenney outlined a plan that would update concessions and restrooms and bring in new revenue streams as well.
Among the biggest projects on the table is the so-called triangle building that would be located just west of the park. A parking lot idea has been scuttled, but the Cubs have planned on building restaurants, a Hall of Fame and workout facilities for Cubs players.
"Everyone has heard about the triangle building forever," Kenney said last spring. "It didn't get built. It has to get built. It's holding us back. It's holding performance on the field back.
"We don't have adequate player facilities. We don't have a batting tunnel to prepare yourself if you're going to come in and pinch-hit. You hit into a net [in the clubhouse]. … The facilities [at spring training] are better than the facilities we have in Chicago.
"That's one part of it, and the other parts of it are fan amenities. Our mezzanine suites, we don't even call them luxury suites anymore because they're neither luxury, nor suites. We call them skyboxes. We all know the washroom situation is unacceptable. The concession, the quality of the food—we rank at the bottom.
"This isn't a revelation to anybody. These are things that we need to do and have needed to do for years, and the Tribune as a public company just couldn't, you just couldn't justify 'Let's go put $250 million into Wrigley Field.' "
Kenney still hopes to get those plans under way soon. Whether or not the Rickettses are on board for the "modernization" of Wrigley remains to be seen.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Link(Tribune)
"We want to see this [deal] finished," Cubs Chairman Crane Kenney said at last weekend's Cubs Convention. "It hasn't distracted us much from our mission. We have a lot of things we want to do, what we call 'Wrigley 2014,' which are the plans for the outside design and all the things we want to get done, and you can't do it without an owner to help direct you."
The year 2014 is the 100th anniversary of Wrigley, a season that will be celebrated no matter who the owner is. The Cubs have big plans for the concourse behind home plate and other areas they believe need updating. Last March at spring training, Kenney outlined a plan that would update concessions and restrooms and bring in new revenue streams as well.
Among the biggest projects on the table is the so-called triangle building that would be located just west of the park. A parking lot idea has been scuttled, but the Cubs have planned on building restaurants, a Hall of Fame and workout facilities for Cubs players.
"Everyone has heard about the triangle building forever," Kenney said last spring. "It didn't get built. It has to get built. It's holding us back. It's holding performance on the field back.
"We don't have adequate player facilities. We don't have a batting tunnel to prepare yourself if you're going to come in and pinch-hit. You hit into a net [in the clubhouse]. … The facilities [at spring training] are better than the facilities we have in Chicago.
"That's one part of it, and the other parts of it are fan amenities. Our mezzanine suites, we don't even call them luxury suites anymore because they're neither luxury, nor suites. We call them skyboxes. We all know the washroom situation is unacceptable. The concession, the quality of the food—we rank at the bottom.
"This isn't a revelation to anybody. These are things that we need to do and have needed to do for years, and the Tribune as a public company just couldn't, you just couldn't justify 'Let's go put $250 million into Wrigley Field.' "
Kenney still hopes to get those plans under way soon. Whether or not the Rickettses are on board for the "modernization" of Wrigley remains to be seen.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Link(Tribune)
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