The ballpark would be "closer to downtown" and "offer views of the city’s famed skyline"White Sox/Related Midwest
The next home for the White Sox "could be a modern stadium in a ballpark village type of setting" in the city’s South Loop, according to renderings released yesterday by the team and the company that owns the land. The pictures show an "open-air ballpark surrounded by large green spaces and restaurants, businesses and residences" on a 62-acre parcel called "The 78," which is owned by development firm Related Midwest. The ballpark would be "closer to downtown" and "offer views of the city’s famed skyline." Guaranteed Rate Field would be "redeveloped into a soccer stadium that could perhaps house the Chicago Fire" if the MLS club decided to move from Soldier Field (AP, 2/7).
The proposal so far is "speculative, with no way identified to pay for the new park." Public financing "would require action by lawmakers, and Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker has "expressed his general opposition to taxpayers funding private development, beyond typical infrastructure costs" (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 2/7).
