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Sox looking at building in South Loop


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2 minutes ago, JoeCredeYes said:

I'm not going to get into the public money debate here, but this sentiment sure worked out well for Oakland.

If he wants to move the team because the state/City doesn’t want a boondoggle, I can’t argue it anymore.  Bye

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14 minutes ago, 35thstreetswarm said:

Very San Diego-y

You're right it does.

The railroad along the park is like Baltimore where a road goes through the concourse area but it's closed during games. 

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Anyone who takes the Rock Island from the south burbs/southside goes directly by that site.   They could easily build a platform for a basic station like at 35th.    What would be nice would be to make it easy for fans to easily come from Union Station.   The Amtrak yard across the river is connected to Union Station so maybe some sort of shuttle could be worked out and a pedestrian bridge built.  Most suburban fans do not want to take a Metra train into the city and then the L train to a game especially a night game.

I also agree that this is most likely just posturing on JR's part.   That said, I could see this happening with private money if Mellody Hobson (and George Lucas) took full ownership of the team.   They definitely have the funds to build a ballpark similar to the renderings.  Since the Sox do not draw well they could make it a smaller "boutique" ballpark with seating for around 35K and then increase ticket prices when they are good.

 

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42 minutes ago, Kyyle23 said:

If he wants to move the team because the state/City doesn’t want a boondoggle, I can’t argue it anymore.  Bye

I agree. It seems like so many corporations are given handouts, either directly or indirectly. Folks look at Tesla and their success, but buyers were given $5000 in tax breaks to buy an EV. That relieved pricing pressure. I wonder if Tesla would have been as profitable without those. Business are given incentives to locate in certain towns. It's crazy how much corporations take and not always give. 

I get it's a competition. The team has some value to the region it is located and the region has value to the club. If the team is worth more to Charlotte or Nashville and if one of those is worth more to the team. I guess it's time to leave. Enjoy your new fans and ballpark. 

We are taught to believe in capitalism and free markets as the American way. I guess this just stresses that belief. 

 

 

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59 minutes ago, JoeCredeYes said:

I'm not going to get into the public money debate here, but this sentiment sure worked out well for Oakland.

It's a chance that I'm certain 100% of taxpayers without either a financial interest or a fan interest are willing to take. There are a lot more uninterested folks willing to tell them to leave and combined with a fair number of Sox fans, there might not be any political capital to get a stadium deal done. 

 

 

 

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Since 1970 I have wondered if the bad guys left maybe something better would come along. Chicago should be an anchor franchise of the AL not Ass Clowns Incorporated. 

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Obviously best case scenario if this happens it all comes out of JR's pocket (and then he promptly sells the team LOL). If that won't happen, haven't different cities gotten creative with funding new stadiums in ways that don't directly pull money from the pockets of the residents? For example, I thought I heard of a city (not sure which one) paying for their new stadium through adding on a tax to all hotel room charges for a fixed amount of years.

Edited by ScootsMcGoots
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31 minutes ago, ScootsMcGoots said:

Obviously best case scenario if this happens it all comes out of JR's pocket (and then he promptly sells the team LOL). If that won't happen, haven't different cities gotten creative with funding new stadiums in ways that don't directly pull money from the pockets of the residents? For example, I thought I heard of a city (not sure which one) paying for their new stadium through adding on a tax to all hotel room charges for a fixed amount of years.

There are a few problems with those taxes. While they look like an easy way to have out of town guests buy cool stuff for the locals it can actually harm tourism and wind up not generating the revenue promised. 

The individual traveling through won't change plans, it's the convention centers and business travel affected. 

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3 hours ago, RichieZisk said:

Anyone who takes the Rock Island from the south burbs/southside goes directly by that site.   They could easily build a platform for a basic station like at 35th.    What would be nice would be to make it easy for fans to easily come from Union Station.   The Amtrak yard across the river is connected to Union Station so maybe some sort of shuttle could be worked out and a pedestrian bridge built.  Most suburban fans do not want to take a Metra train into the city and then the L train to a game especially a night game.

I also agree that this is most likely just posturing on JR's part.   That said, I could see this happening with private money if Mellody Hobson (and George Lucas) took full ownership of the team.   They definitely have the funds to build a ballpark similar to the renderings.  Since the Sox do not draw well they could make it a smaller "boutique" ballpark with seating for around 35K and then increase ticket prices when they are good.

 

Aren’t Hobson and Lucas the favorites to own the Nashville expansion team?

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2 hours ago, ScootsMcGoots said:

Obviously best case scenario if this happens it all comes out of JR's pocket (and then he promptly sells the team LOL). If that won't happen, haven't different cities gotten creative with funding new stadiums in ways that don't directly pull money from the pockets of the residents? For example, I thought I heard of a city (not sure which one) paying for their new stadium through adding on a tax to all hotel room charges for a fixed amount of years.

Isn't that how the current stadium is funded, a hotel and entertainment tax of some kind? 

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7 hours ago, FT35 said:

Probably right!  Or it makes it easier to sell a team…”sell the rumor, buy the news.”  Time will tell I’m sure.

It's the other way around, if you are an investor. Right?  Minority report, but I like GRF and I don't mind where it is.

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14 minutes ago, Stinky Stanky said:

It's the other way around, if you are an investor. Right?  Minority report, but I like GRF and I don't mind where it is.

I agree. From the south burbs, GRF is easy to get to and from. 

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5 hours ago, RichieZisk said:

What would be nice would be to make it easy for fans to easily come from Union Station.   

If they had a path/riverwalk from Union Station it wouldn't be too bad. Like 1-1.5 mile walk. I would absolutely love that. Take the train from Walter Payton Roundhouse in Aurora and a nice walk to the stadium. 

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If I am looking at the same strip of land I wonder if perhaps that acreage would present load bearing issues at certain points and/or require removal of non-load bearing fill and/or contaminated soil.

Looking at a historical map from the straightening of the Chicago river back in the 1920's (see link below) , I have to wonder how deep the old river bed was, how much muck and fill would need to be hauled away and how many piles would have to be driven in order to support structures and even flat work. The cost for extensive land engineering, excavation, fill, pylons, etc. could well be a reason why that site has remained undeveloped for decades.

https://chicagology.com/harbor/straighteningriver/

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3 hours ago, ptatc said:

I agree. From the south burbs, GRF is easy to get to and from. 

I come from the north and I would still have to get through the Loop to reach the new site so there's no benefit for me. Ride public transit after a night game?  Thanks, but no thanks.

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Playing in the loop does not sound good with our big cities having some major problems in modern America. Suburban fans won't be coming. They need to drive their cars and there's nowhere to park down there, baby.

Edited by greg775
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5 minutes ago, greg775 said:

Playing in the loop does not sound good with our big cities having some major problems in modern America. Suburban fans won't be coming. They need to drive their cars and there's nowhere to park down there, baby.

The current stadium isn’t exactly in the greatest area and no one still knows how a bullet was zipping around the stands.  The parking would be a concern though, but it doesn’t seem to matter much to Cubs fans.  More people would commute via the CTA and Metra.

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7 hours ago, pcq said:

Since 1970 I have wondered if the bad guys left maybe something better would come along. Chicago should be an anchor franchise of the AL not Ass Clowns Incorporated. 

Semi kidding here and I might be an old English teacher (or not) but in the above sentence, what part of speech is "Ass?"

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1 hour ago, tray said:

If I am looking at the same strip of land I wonder if perhaps that acreage would present load bearing issues at certain points and/or require removal of non-load bearing fill and/or contaminated soil.

Looking at a historical map from the straightening of the Chicago river back in the 1920's (see link below) , I have to wonder how deep the old river bed was, how much muck and fill would need to be hauled away and how many piles would have to be driven in order to support structures and even flat work. The cost for extensive land engineering, excavation, fill, pylons, etc. could well be a reason why that site has remained undeveloped for decades.

https://chicagology.com/harbor/straighteningriver/

Nothing there would be too difficult or expensive from an environmental or structural standpoint to overcome. Lincoln Yards sold for 7mil an acre despite being riddled with environmental issues. 

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2 hours ago, tray said:

If I am looking at the same strip of land I wonder if perhaps that acreage would present load bearing issues at certain points and/or require removal of non-load bearing fill and/or contaminated soil.

Looking at a historical map from the straightening of the Chicago river back in the 1920's (see link below) , I have to wonder how deep the old river bed was, how much muck and fill would need to be hauled away and how many piles would have to be driven in order to support structures and even flat work. The cost for extensive land engineering, excavation, fill, pylons, etc. could well be a reason why that site has remained undeveloped for decades.

https://chicagology.com/harbor/straighteningriver/

They wouldn't be discussing this site if that's the case.

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2 hours ago, Chisoxfn said:

This is awesome - maybe jr wants the deal set and than will sell with the principles in place and let the new owner take it from there?

This is what I think.  JR just wants the huge boost in franchise value that an agreement to build a new stadium brings, prior to selling.

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