Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

Plans call for using this site ad jacent to the ballpark for a six-story building that will house team offices, a team museum , shops and other areas. Cubs Contin ued tram Page 16 of Wrigley Field been preserved, but a lso looks forward and gives them something more." The situation 1,700 miles to the south west in Mesa , Ar iz., is not nearly so straightforward.The Cubs are the foundation on which th e entire Cac tus Lea gue operates , with th e team successfully parlaying its sr-year history in Mesa and broad national appeal to eas ily the best atten da nce in Arizona, home and away each March. But its current facility is also falli ng into disrepair. and in January the club struck a preliminary deal with Mesa and state officials on a new stadium, practice facility and mixed-use developm ent, beating out a ferven t counteroffer from Naples, Fla. But that Mesa plan, involv ing $84 million in public-sector fund s, would employ a ticket surc harge on all Cactus League games to raise the money a move that has raised howls of protest among th e other MLB teams that train in Arizona . "It's a catc h-22situation. We don't want the Cubs to leave. We want th em here, but we are all opposed to th is tax," sa id Derrick Hall, Arizona Diamondbacks president and CEO. "It's not us aga inst the Cubs.The Ricketts seem like great peop le, really commi tted, and I think they'll be fabulous owners. It's us against the Legislatu re , because this measure doesn 't make any sense , and I fa il to see how the number s add up." Advocates of the bill, however.claim that the ticket surcharge would sup ply far more than what is need ed in Mesa and create a larger pool of mon ey to help fund fut ure sp ring training projects for other teams. Still, MLB and the oth er clubs remain active in trying to am en d the bill as it weaves through the Arizo na Legis lature, pushing instead a tax-increment financing structure. "There is not one corner of the building that's not being touched." TO RICKms M CHAIRMAN. CHICAGO CUBS The Cubs have the ability to back out of the dea l if the Legislature doesn't approve the project by .Iuly or if the pact is voted down in a referendum. " I want to get tha t solved," Selig said. "We're tryin g to find al ternatives . We're trying to work through th e options , and I wa nt to get it done. I un derstand clearly what the Cubs mean to Mesa and the whole league th ere." Remaking history The roots of the Cubs' firm win -first at titude predate the arrival of th e Ricketts family The hiring of manager Lou Piniella in late 2006 helped substantially reset the organizational tone, with the veteran skipper guiding the Cubs to two playoff berths in h is th ree seasons in Ch icago, providing the club's first three-yearstreak of winning seasons since a six-year run from 1967·72. The Ricketts famil y however. has heightened expectations, and last year's Opening Day payroll of $135million, third highest in th e league, could serve as a baseline goin g forward as they intend to stay aggressive on that front and have pledged to plow profits back into the team. On top of retaining Kenney Tom Ricketts firmly charged his team presid en t to fin d the best possible executive for th e sales an d ma rketing ro le, event ually landin g Hayward . The Cubs have a new ch ief finan cial officer and new general counse l coming in early April, but neither has been pub licly named.Another important recent h ire was Jahaan Blake, who joined the club in late February to head up fan experiences, a new position firml y aimed in part at addressing Wrigley's spotty repu ta tion in cus tomer service. Th e clu b also hired Kevin Saghy to oversee marketing and bus iness pu blic relations, also a new ro le, and he will be communicating th e Cubs' off-field an d charita ble endeavors . Tom Ricketts, Kenney and Hayward are each sa cr ificing personal wealth and other career as pirations to work for the club.And cons ider ing Hayward's new officeat Wrigley is a conver ted wome n's rest roo m and Tom Ricketts ' own ballpark office was also beingconstructed during the offseason and shoehorned into the cramped ballpark, the job does not necessarily offer all of the finest perks. "There's ultimat ely one goal: Win th e World Series," Kenney sa id. "That's an incred ibly unifying, galva nizing thi ng. We have a chance to remake histor y Wally, me, every body could have taken otherjobs, probably for a lot more money but th is is an opportun ity to be pari of some th ing truly special.When we win, the only thing I thi nk will be comparable will be Lake Placid." And All Other Sports. 800-DAKTRONICS (325-8766) VVVtfW'.daktronics.com Street & Smith's SpcrtsBuslness.JOURNAL sal es@daktron ics.com I www.spo rtsb us iness jour nal. com DAKTRONICS MA RCH 29 · APRIL 4 . 20 10 I III

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