Cubs May Impose Ticket Tax To Help Fund Wrigley Renovation

Tribune Co. Exploring Ticket Tax As Option To Pay For Wrigley Field Upgrades

Tribune Co. is "exploring the possibility of imposing a ticket tax -- in the range of [$0.25-0.50] -- to help finance a top-to-bottom overhaul" of Wrigley Field, according to sources cited by Fran Spielman of the CHICAGO SUN-TIMES. If the Cubs in '07 had added a $0.50 surcharge on each of the 3.25 million tickets it sold, it "would have generated more than $1.6[M] in additional revenue." Spielman notes the money "could be used to help retire Wrigley renovation bonds in the event the stadium is sold" to the Illinois Sports Facilities Authority. A source: "We're trying to restore Wrigley Field. The theory we're operating under is that the people who contribute to that renovation should be the people who benefit from the restoration." Cubs Chair Crane Kenney "did not comment" on the ticket tax idea (CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, 3/11).