Today, the Chicago Cubs filed for a permit for an advertising sign in right field, according to Crain’s. The 650-square-foot see-through sign is a projected part of the $500 million Wrigley Field renovation project, and also the most hotly debated items between the Cubs and the rooftops owners.
Like Cubs front office man Crane Kenney said at CubsCon last weekend, “you know what the hold up is,” in getting the Wrigley renovations done.
The rooftops and the Cubs unfortunately do not have an agreement in place regarding the renovations. The Cubs do have a revenue-sharing deal with the rooftops owners though, and that runs through the 2023 season. It’s an agreement the Ricketts family inherited when they bought the team in 2009.
The Wrigleyville Rooftops Association has issued the following statement regarding the Ricketts family filing a permit application to construct a right field sign:
“This is an unfortunate turn of events because our hope was to find a solution to this matter. Rooftop owners believe any blockage of our views violates the contract we have with the owners of the Cubs. We have instructed our legal team to proceed accordingly,” said Ryan McLaughlin, Wrigleyville Rooftops Association.
The rooftops are no longer unified in their resistance to the team. Some rooftops owners have bee assuaged, and it’s hard to fathom that any rooftops not affected by this signage will seriously bleed money pursuing lawsuits against the Cubs
Paul M. Banks is the owner of The Sports Bank.net, an affiliate of Fox Sports. An MBA and Fulbright scholar in media studies, he’s also an analyst for multiple news talk radio stations across the country; with regular weekly segments on ESPN, NBC, CBS and Fox Sports Radio. A former writer for NBCChicago.com and WashingtonTimes.com, he’s also been featured on the History Channel. President Barack Obama follows him on Twitter (@paulmbanks)