The Chicago Cubs on Friday began selling single-game tickets to the upcoming 2013 season amid the North Side team's ongoing spat with the city concerning its nine-figure renovation plans.
Beginning at 8 a.m., ticket buyers at Wrigley Field's ticket office got a two-hour head start on fans buying tickets online or over the phone beginning at 10 a.m. According to NBC Chicago, this year will mark the last time that in-person ticket buyers will be privy to the pre-sale. Earlier in the week, fans willing to pay extra surcharges as high as an extra 20 percent were able to buy tickets online.
Another change lying ahead for Cubs fans in the new season is that the team will newly accept paperless tickets purchased through Apple's Passbook smartphone app. Twelve other MLB teams are using Passbook in the new season.
Meanwhile, the Cubs remain at odds with Ald. Tom Tunney (44th) over their hopes to mount a significant rehab of the 99-year-old Wrigley Field at the coming season's end. The Chicago Tribune reports that Tunney said Thursday he will not sign off on the Cubs' $300 million renovation plan unless it is updated to include more police protection, more remote parking and addresses the "aesthetic" concerns of area businesses and residents.
Per the Chicago Sun-Times, however, Mayor Rahm Emanuel this week summoned Tunney to meet with him and Cubs chairman Tom Ricketts in an apparent attempt to reach an agreement on the matter before the Cubs' opening day on April 8. Tunney told the paper that the issues at hand remained unresolved after the meeting.
In January, the Cubs unveiled a lofty renovation plan for the team's home turf, complete with a clubhouse, more restrooms and a boutique hotel across from the ballpark.
The Ricketts family pulled a tax subsidy request from the plan but in return wants the city to ease up some restrictions in Wrigleyville, particularly the ones affecting game start times, billboards and signage. Tunney has as yet refused to sign off on the plan, while the mayor has continued to push for an agreement to be made in the name of economic development.
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