Yahoo Sports 
Wrigley Field bleachers may not be ready for season opener
Wrigley Field may not be ready for its close up after all when it hosts its first-ever night season-opener on April 5. According to Chicago Cubs President of Business Operations Crane Kenney, several different hurdles — some expected, some not — have caused delays in rebuilding the ballpark's bleachers, which could result in them not being open when the bright lights go on next spring.
From the aptly named Bleacher Nation:
That is not the expectation, but Kenney said there are contingency plans in place to accommodate season ticket holders within the rest of the stadium if they cannot sit in the bleachers by Opening Day. Kenney suggested that, if that happens, they will not sell single-game tickets in the bleachers for Opening Day (or however long they need to complete work).
The delays have been caused by a combination of factors, including weather (which they did plan for), plan changes (which we saw playing out over the course of the year with the outfield signage issues), and a water pipe system that was much more antiquated than expected when they got into the ground. That issue was supposed to be remedied by the city by October 6, and it still is not complete. Kenney made sure to emphasize, though, that the water pipe issue was not the only cause of delay (in other words: he’s not blaming the city for delays).
The bleachers are the focal point of phase one of the Cubs $575 million renovation project at Wrigley Field. The project began in October when the famed bleachers were torn down, and will be spread out over the next four offseasons.
Phase one will include expansion and restoration in the left and right field bleachers, with an additional 300 seats being added. They're also creating space for additional outfield signage, a 3,990-square-foot video board in left field and a 2,400-square-foot video board in right field.
That's a lot of work to squeeze into five months. Any delay to that timeline obviously puts them in a difficult spot, and this seems to be a significant, possibly long-lasting set of circumstances. With frigid temperatures already taking over in Chicago, the winter months figure to be hit or miserable in terms of working conditions, so it's looking like an uphill battle both ways for the constructions crews.
“It's the nature of the construction business, being able to deal with timing issues and setbacks and delays,” said Julian Green, vice president of communications and community affairs. “[Delays] happen with any construction project. They're compounded with restoring a 100-year old ballpark and trying to work within a 26-week time frame, which as of Monday, is 19 weeks.
“This is an extremely challenging project given the environment that is the weather as well as the compressed timing we have,” Green said. “It's going to be a challenge.”
It's actually a good thing the Cubs on field rebuild didn't move ahead of schedule in 2014, or who knows how far behind they might be.
The Cubs are scheduled to host the St. Louis Cardinals in MLB's standalone opener on Sunday April 5. Weather permitting, that won't change. But the scene could be very strange if things aren't in working order.
More MLB coverage from Yahoo Sports:
- - - - - - -
Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at bigleaguestew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Townie813
