“There are two seasons in Chicago,” goes the saying, “winter and construction.” Construction season is well underway at Wrigley Field. The 1060 Project is a four-phase undertaking by the Chicago Cubs organization to modernize the Friendly Confines. Originally, the project was scheduled to take four years, but Cubs Chairman of the Board Tom Ricketts recently said that it would take at least five.
Phase One, currently underway, includes structural and seating improvements as well as the addition of two LED video scoreboards in the outfield. The 1060 Project website also states that, “during Phase One, there will be structural steel and deep foundation work performed” on the third base side.
The seating improvements included the entire bleacher section of Wrigley Field. In fact, the left and center field bleachers didn’t open until June 11, while the right field bleachers are scheduled to open in July.
The video scoreboard in left-center shows replay, the current batting matchup, and various statistics. It also provides entertainment for fans that are less concerned about the game. The board next to the right field foul pole shows both teams’ lineups. Both scoreboards have green backgrounds to blend in with the ballpark’s aesthetic.
Daktronics, perhaps the biggest name in the scoreboard industry, got the contract for all of the boards at Wrigley. The left field scoreboard prominently features a Wintrust Financial bank sign, in which the “W” is kept illuminated after Cubs wins. The right field board advertises for the king of beers, you know the one.
The left field scoreboard is 3,990 square feet. That’s twice the size of the landmark scoreboard in center. The scoreboard in right is 2,059 square feet, essentially the same size as the iconic center field board.
Both scoreboards have a top of the line13HD pixel layout, which is perfect for outdoor venues. The Cubs also use the newest Daktronics Show Control system, which, according to Daktronics, is an, “industry-leading system [that] provides a combination of display control software, world-class video processing, data integration and playback hardware.”
The Cubs will also install two 180-foot ribbon displays and 14.5-foot pitch displays along the first and third base lines, two 74.5-foot fascia wall displays in the outfield, and four fixed-digit scoreboards in the lower concourse.
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On May 25, Cubs rookie of the year candidate Kris Bryant became the first player to hit the left field scoreboard in a game when he crushed an off-speed pitch from Nationals relief pitcher Aaron Barrett. While the estimates of how far it actually went varied (463 feet according to the ESPN Home Run Tracker), Cubs broadcaster Len Kasper summed it up perfectly:
“You know what – I have no idea where it landed, but it went a long, long way.”
Bryant’s homer tied the game up 2-2, and Addison Russell ended it in the ninth with a right field gapper. While the Cubs ultimately lost the series to the Nationals, Bryant’s mammoth shot and Russell’s walk-off double was a microcosm of the hopes that Cub nation has for the young Northsiders.
Wrigley Field has been in need of serious structural renovations for quite some time, and it’s about time that the organization decided to do something about it regardless of receiving taxpayer money for it. Almost no one will argue with that.
The scoreboards are another story.
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While it seems like most fans are either supportive or indifferent of the new scoreboards, there are two groups of people who are vehemently opposed to them.
The first group is the traditionalist Cubs fans that prefer to see Wrigley how it was during the Cubs glory years. Well…you know what I mean. This group is fairly large but not very organized, and thus had little impact on the scoreboards’ installation.
The second group is composed of owners of the rooftop clubs that have a financial stake in being able to see the whole field of play.
While the left field scoreboard sits in front of a three-flat with no rooftop, it is so large that it at least partially obstructs the view for practically every rooftop in left field. The board in right, on the other hand, directly blocks the Sheffield Club and Down the Line rooftops in addition to a few others.
In 2004, most of the rooftops signed onto a 20-year revenue-sharing contract with the Cubs. The rooftop owners believed that clause 6.6 of the contract would prevent the Cubs from building scoreboards that block their view. The clause reads:
“6.6 The Cubs shall not erect windscreens or other barriers to obstruct the views of the Rooftops, provided however that temporary items such as banners, flags and decorations for special occasions, shall not be considered as having been erected to obstruct views of the Rooftops. Any expansion of Wrigley Field approved by governmental authorities shall not be a violation of this agreement, including this section.”
Because of the last sentence, the Cubs were able to push their agenda through the Chicago Plan Commission. Allowing the Cubs to expand at the behest of governmental authorities gave them carte-blanche in terms of construction with Mayor Rahm Emanuel, a pro-business Cubs fan, running the show.
Who is right or wrong is beside the point of this article. The awesomely gargantuan scoreboards are up, and with more ad signs coming, it’s easy to imagine why one side feels shafted while the other side feels like a million bucks.