Tom Tunney Throws Shade On Wrigley Field Sheffield Avenue Party Deck Proposal
By Chuck Sudo in News on Sep 5, 2013 2:15PM
Ald. Tom Tunney (44th)
Tunney cited public safety issues for drawing his latest line in the sand. Public safety was the same reason Tunney put the kibosh over a pedestrian bridge over Clark Street connecting Wrigley Field to a boutique hotel that’s part of the Cubs’ renovation plan.
“I’ve been opposed to liquor over a public street.… I have not been supportive of decks over any street — Patterson, Clark and/or Sheffield,” said Tunney, whose ward includes Wrigley Field.“Initial reactions to my office have been opposed. The community has been opposed to bridges over everything.”
The problem with Tunney’s latest objection is that he openly admits he may not be able to stop the Cubs from erecting the static sign in right field that’s at the center of the dispute. If the plans for the deck are scrapped, the Cubs can still install the sign at their leisure, as team spokesman Julian Green reiterated to the Sun-Times. If that happens, it could trigger a lawsuit from the rooftop club owners for blocking their view of the field, and the Cubs have been looking at ways of appeasing them, Tunney and others in the community concerned about the club’s renovation plan.
Green reminded Tunney the right field deck, which would take out a lane of parking on and hang over Sheffield, was the rooftop owners’ idea.
“We thought this could be a potential solve for [killing] the bridge over Clark Street. If there’s no support for that idea, then we’re back to Square One.”
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