ILL-inois: Chicago politicians blocking Wrigley Field rehab

Marathon Pundit in front of Wrigley Field

Chicago Cubs owner Tom Ricketts wants to renovate Wrigley Field--which is vastly overrated as a place to watch a baseball game.

Disclosure: I am a White Sox fan.

Writing the Daily Herald, Barry Rozner, who thinks the Cubs should move to the suburbs, explains the balks the owner faces:

Ricketts isn't allowed to repair and rebuild because of the landmark status attached to the ballpark, a sham designed to force Cubs ownership to first grease palms and fill pockets before altering the stadium in any way.

Tom Ricketts must get down on his knees and bow to Chicago politicians and neighborhood power brokers. He must kiss rings. He must humiliate himself.

He must do all of this so he can spend $500 million of his own money to fix up his ballpark and build a hotel across the street, and in the process keep revenue streaming into a neighborhood that seemingly hates having the team in Wrigley Field.

Of course, most people living there probably don't know the area around the park was a trash heap 30 years ago, and that it's because the team is there that the neighborhood thrives.

Yes, the Cubs should ditch the North Side and Chicago and tell the politicians to give themselves groin injuries.

And maybe the Cubs will then end their century-long World Series championship drought.