Cubs Erect Mockups Of Video Screen, Outfield Signage

By Chuck Sudo in News on May 28, 2013 10:00PM

The Chicago Cubs raised mockups Monday of what video screen and other outfield signage at Wrigley Field would look like from the vantage points of the rooftop baseball clubs. Cranes were positioned at Waveland and Sheffield Avenues so that the Cubs, rooftop club owners and other neighbors of the ballpark could see how the jumbotron and signage—the linchpins of the Cubs proposed renovation plan—would obstruct the views of Wrigley Field from the rooftops.

Cubs Chairman Tom Ricketts, who looked at the mockups from a rooftop near left field, said they were “what we expected,” with “minimal” blockage of the rooftops. Murphy’s Bleachers owner Beth Murphy, the spokeswoman for the rooftop club owners, and Ald. Tom Tunney (44th) both agreed the proposed screen was “big.” Murphy added the video screen mockup blocked views for a couple rooftops, but not hers.

Cubs spokesman Julian Green said the mockups weren’t a sign the Cubs were moving forward with anything regarding the renovation plan, which still needs to be run through a gauntlet of city committees and neighborhood hearings before it’s approved. “This is all part of an evaluation process as we work to come up with the best locations for our proposed signs while minimizing the impact to our rooftop partners,” Green said.

The Wrigleyville Rooftops Association released a statement thanking the Cubs for showing a “willingness to demonstrate the impact of their sign plan.”

“We were shown several options today, which we will verify with the permit applications they have submitted to the City of Chicago. We know one thing for sure: Signs on the Rooftops have no obstruction of our patrons' views and remain the best solution to provide sign revenue to the team."