FUCK YOU CRANE KENNEY

[ChuckD]

Without the benefit of public funding like most teams in our sport, we have also made sizable investments in Wrigley Field.

Boo fucking hoo.

As far as I'm concerned, fuck it.  Get the state and city funds.  Build a new ballpark. 

Turn Wrigley into a Cubs museum/tournament park and give it to the Chicago park district in exchange for new land.  All the new seats you gain are worth more than the land was, anyway.  They could even play the home series against the Sox there every year.  People would probably pay double for those tickets.  Build the new stadium right on the lakefront.  Make the park district give up a piece of that golf course just north of Lincoln park.  It's not like people won't have plenty of golf courses to go to when it's gone or reduced.  Sell the naming rights to the highest bidder for all I care.  Just make sure there's ample parking.  I'm sure it will be for the $20 it'll cost. 

Parking is overrated. I don't care what happens to Wrigley, but don't make me go to a mallpark surrounded by a sea of asphalt.

Hear, hear.

[De Jesus]

Without the benefit of public funding like most teams in our sport, we have also made sizable investments in Wrigley Field.

Boo fucking hoo.

As far as I'm concerned, fuck it.  Get the state and city funds.  Build a new ballpark. 

Turn Wrigley into a Cubs museum/tournament park and give it to the Chicago park district in exchange for new land.  All the new seats you gain are worth more than the land was, anyway.  They could even play the home series against the Sox there every year.  People would probably pay double for those tickets.  Build the new stadium right on the lakefront.  Make the park district give up a piece of that golf course just north of Lincoln park.  It's not like people won't have plenty of golf courses to go to when it's gone or reduced.  Sell the naming rights to the highest bidder for all I care.  Just make sure there's ample parking.  I'm sure it will be for the $20 it'll cost. 

Parking is overrated. I don't care what happens to Wrigley, but don't make me go to a mallpark surrounded by a sea of asphalt.

If they build it on that golf course, even if they surround it with asphalt, it's only half a mile away from the old one.  Some people walk that far to park their car now.  You can still hang out in Wrigleyville before and after the game.

[TJ]

Yeah, let's spend some more of Illinois taxpayers' money. Oh, and I'm sure they'll be able to easily take the land from Marovitz Golf Course and put a stadium out there that is for all intensive purposes private property.

That'll go through without a word from Friends of the Parks, or the people who play golf there, or the residents in the high rises on LSD who don't want to look at the stadium, or the downstate pols who might think the state spending money on another stadium in Chicago is misguided, or the South Side pols whose constituents won't feel too keen on funding anything for the Cubs, or the fiscal conservatives, or the liberals who want to build up social services, or the the realists who might not be opposed to building this but also realize that THE STATE IS BROKE and THE CITY IS ALREADY COMMITTED TO SPENDING BILLIONS ON THE OLYMPICS.

Otherwise, this all sounds great.

[butthead]

Without the benefit of public funding like most teams in our sport, we have also made sizable investments in Wrigley Field.

Boo fucking hoo.

As far as I'm concerned, fuck it.  Get the state and city funds.  Build a new ballpark. 

Turn Wrigley into a Cubs museum/tournament park and give it to the Chicago park district in exchange for new land.  All the new seats you gain are worth more than the land was, anyway.  They could even play the home series against the Sox there every year.  People would probably pay double for those tickets.  Build the new stadium right on the lakefront.  Make the park district give up a piece of that golf course just north of Lincoln park.  It's not like people won't have plenty of golf courses to go to when it's gone or reduced.  Sell the naming rights to the highest bidder for all I care.  Just make sure there's ample parking.  I'm sure it will be for the $20 it'll cost. 

Parking is overrated. I don't care what happens to Wrigley, but don't make me go to a mallpark surrounded by a sea of asphalt.

If they build it on that golf course, even if they surround it with asphalt, it's only half a mile away from the old one.  Some people walk that far to park their car now.  You can still hang out in Wrigleyville before and after the game.

I don't hang out in Wrigleyville much now, so that's not my issue. I just hate parking lots and love urban ballparks. Parking lots ruin the city. This book sums is up nicely.

[Eli]

intensive purposes

How intense are these purposes?

[Internet Apex]

Without the benefit of public funding like most teams in our sport, we have also made sizable investments in Wrigley Field.

Boo fucking hoo.

As far as I'm concerned, fuck it.  Get the state and city funds.  Build a new ballpark. 

Turn Wrigley into a Cubs museum/tournament park and give it to the Chicago park district in exchange for new land.  All the new seats you gain are worth more than the land was, anyway.  They could even play the home series against the Sox there every year.  People would probably pay double for those tickets.  Build the new stadium right on the lakefront.  Make the park district give up a piece of that golf course just north of Lincoln park.  It's not like people won't have plenty of golf courses to go to when it's gone or reduced.  Sell the naming rights to the highest bidder for all I care.  Just make sure there's ample parking.  I'm sure it will be for the $20 it'll cost. 

Parking is overrated. I don't care what happens to Wrigley, but don't make me go to a mallpark surrounded by a sea of asphalt.

If they build it on that golf course, even if they surround it with asphalt, it's only half a mile away from the old one.  Some people walk that far to park their car now.  You can still hang out in Wrigleyville before and after the game.

I don't hang out in Wrigleyville much now, so that's not my issue. I just hate parking lots and love urban ballparks. Parking lots ruin the city. This book sums is up nicely.

Wha? You should drive a tow truck. You're missing your true calling.

[Wheezer]

intensive purposes

How intense are these purposes?

Hear, hear.

[GNM]

I have always sort of thought they would just replace Wrigley piece by piece until there is very little old ballpark left.  The Bleacher renovation is a perfect microcosm for how the park should be treated: They kept the bricks, ivy, and scoreboard and gutted everything else for replacement.

[Quality Start Machine]

Building a new ballpark is a piece of fucking cake.

Get those imbeciles who are paying the Cubs for engraved pavers to have their names ingraved on the bricks that will go into building the new park. Considering a paver costs a buck, maybe two with the engraving, and the Cubs are charging $175 a pop, they're pulling in a pretty tidy sum.

Shit, you can probably get the Yellons of the world to pony up a shutload to have their names painted in "their" seats.

[flannj]

Just got my nice letter from Crane again.
And I'll preface this with the same comment as last year, "I'm not expecting sympathy about this stuff and some will even find it amusing." So yes Chuck, I understand the concept of supply and demand.

After my season ticket prices jumped 16.9% last year, that eyes too close together fucker made apologies to the fans and responded to  the media by saying that the price increase had been set before the economy tanked and that the Cubs were sorry and they realized this would be a hardship for many people given the difficult times and blah... blah... blah.
So of course to support that apology they raised my ticket prices another 12.6% for 2010.

Crane's letter makes it all better though:
RUDY JARAMILLO!
(It's long so I'll have to use multiple posts.)

Thank you for your tremendous support of the Chicago Cubs as we embark on a new era under the Ricketts
family ownership. As I have done in the past, this letter will cover a number of topics, including our 2010
ticket pricing, the process for renewing your season tickets and a seat relocation option made available for
the first time ever.
New Ownership
On October 27, 2009, the Ricketts family became the eighth owners in the 133-year history of the Chicago
Cubs. They are the first family owners in 30 years and have taken control of the organization with a clear
mission: win a World Championship for the most deserving fans in sports. Already, the benefits of new
ownership can be seen in the form of capital commitments to Wrigley Field (described later), hiring top
management talent such as Rudy Jaramillo, increasing resources for player development and new programs
to improve your experience at the Friendly Confines.
Tom Ricketts and his family grew up as Cubs fans and they know what it means to be dedicated to the team
and our beloved ballpark. Importantly, they are putting their resources to work to improve both. The
family has committed all profits from the team will be reinvested in the ballclub, our player development
system and Wrigley Field for the foreseeable future. As a result, your support of Cubs baseball will
directly impact the quality of the ballclub and the condition of Wrigley Field more than ever.

[flannj]

Team Performance
Coming off of our 97 win performance in 2008, we expected 2009 to be an even better year. On Opening
Day, we fielded a team with eight All Stars from the previous year, the 2008 Rookie of the Year and the
2008 Manager of the Year. Like you and almost every member of the media, we expected to win the
National League Central division for a third consecutive year and play for a World Championship in
October.
We did not reach our goals however and finished with a disappointing record of 83-78. Not long ago, there
might have been some comfort in playing above .500 and finishing in second place. Those days are over.
Success will only be defined by winning a championship and we are committed to finishing the job.
There were bright spots in 2009. The pitching staff put together a solid year, led by our starters who
produced 94 quality starts—the second highest total in the NL. The bullpen ranked second in the NL in
opponents' batting average and fifth in save percentage. Rookie Randy Wells paced the team with 12 wins
and a 3.05 ERA. Offensively, Derrek Lee had a tremendous year, finishing with 35 home runs, 36 doubles
and 111 RBI.
The work has begun to improve the ballclub for 2010 and we expect to return to the playoffs next year.
Since Lou Piniella took over in 2007, our overall record of 265-219 ranks second in the National League
(only Philadelphia has been better). Our home record of 145-97 is best among all NL teams during that
three year span.
Wrigley Field Improvements
With the support of the Ricketts family, we are investing substantially this off season to improve Wrigley
Field. Our concession operations are being reviewed and you will see new product choices and new points
of sale in 2010. A new club will open on the left –field side of the mezzanine suite level and the Captain
Morgan's Club will be reconfigured to provide more sheltered seating and additional outdoor space.
Much-needed expansion plans are underway for both our men's and women's washrooms and many of
those that are not being expanded will be remodeled. Our historic scoreboard, long in need of restoration, is
being refaced to improve its appearance. We are also replacing and adding televisions to improve viewing
throughout the ballpark.
As important as our immediate projects, we are moving forward with a number of long range projects that
will substantially improve the Wrigley experience, including the construction of a multi-purpose facility
west of the ballpark and a more generous renovation of suites.

[flannj]

Season Ticket Location Upgrades
One of the requests we hear most often from our season ticket holders is for improvement of your seating
location. For 2010, we are creating 700 new season ticket locations which will first be offered to season
ticket holders to consider for relocation purposes. These seats include club boxes formerly held by Tribune
Company and seats that were unallocated following our various seating expansions.
The relocation process is detailed in the enclosed fact sheet so please review this information before calling
your season ticket representative. Unfortunately, we will not be allowing for an increase in the number of
your season tickets, as the 120,000 people on the season ticket waiting list will be provided access to your
vacated seats after the relocation program concludes.
Season Ticket Pricing
For 2010, prices are essentially unchanged for 50% of our tickets. This follows holding ticket prices
unchanged for 33% of our inventory in 2008. For 2010, we did raise ticket prices in our most desired
locations however and because those locations are reserved for our season ticket holders, it is likely you
will see an increase.
We understand price increases are unpopular and we will continue pursuing other revenues to finance our
operations, including appropriate marketing sponsorships, new media offerings, Wrigley Field tours, other
sporting events and concerts. We are also supportive of your use of Stub Hub to underwrite your season
ticket purchases and know up to 25% of our ticket inventory traded via Stub Hub for certain games last
year, at prices that were a multiple of face value.
As the amusement taxes you pay have increased over time, including again for 2010, we have broken out
the amusement tax portion of your season ticket invoice so you know where your resources are going.
Season Ticket Holder Amenities
We hope you have taken advantage of the season ticket holder Web site (www.cubs.com/sth), which was
constructed last year at the suggestion of season ticket holders attending one of our Tell it To the Cubs
luncheons. Our meetings with you at those luncheons have been invaluable to our efforts to improve your
experience at Wrigley Field. They will continue in 2010 and we hope you will consider attending.
Last year, season ticket holders used the Web site to access tickets for the NHL Winter Classic, Cubs
spring training games, concerts and our exhibition games in new Yankee Stadium. We will continue
providing you with early access to all of our special events in 2010.
Renewal Process
We hope you will continue your support of Cubs baseball by renewing your season tickets for 2010. To do
so, please return the enclosed renewal form to us by mail or fax on or before December 18, 2009, or send
us an e-mail at cubsseasontickets@cubs.com stating you intend to renew. A deposit is not required at this
time but payment in full is due by January 8, 2010.
To retain your seats, it is imperative we hear from you by December 18, 2009.
Please also provide your updated email address at your convenience at cubsseasontickets@cubs.com. Your
email address is the most efficient way to communicate with you regarding Cubs news and in-season
updates, including changes in game times.
Once again, thank you for supporting the Chicago Cubs. We are committed to earning your loyalty in
everything we do. Please do not hesitate to contact your Ticket Office representative if you have any
questions.
Sincerely,
Crane Kenney
Chairman

[Andy]

Sorry we sucked last year, but we're painting the scoreboard, we're going to bring the stadium into the 20th century (never mind getting it to the 21st), we plan to clean the bathrooms twice a season and...Rudy Jaramillo!

And only the Phillies have won more games than us in the last three years (plus they won 20 playoff games, a pennant and a World Series) in that span while we won 0, none and none.

So please feel free to pay us more!

I also understand why tickets get priced the way they do, you just wish they had the balls to explain it that way.

Dear Season Ticket Holder,

We can charge more for your seats, so we're going to and if you want to keep them you'll have to pay the new price--because we know somebody will.

Love,
Crane

[R-V]

Fuck you for thinking it's your place to comment on baseball issues, you corporate buttstain.

"And eat $21 million?'' club president Crane Kenney said. "I've got 21 million reasons why we're not releasing him. If there's any prospect we can get back players who can help us, or save some of the money [to do other things with], why wouldn't we explore that? ... We don't have an unlimited budget.''

http://www.chicagobreakingsports.com/2009/12/cubs-have-no-plans-to-release-bradley.html

[Andy]

Crane has a grasp on this.  Trade Milton to a team for a prospect and only pay $20.9 of the $21 owed to him.

The man has a big job for a reason!