For The FAN ...

Perhaps the group that truly deserves a well-designed Triangle Building the most is us, the fan. Cub fans have supported this team through decades of disappointment. They've packed Wrigley to watch a below-par product on the field, making one of the worst-performing teams in baseball also one of the most profitable. While obviously the team has to get their money's worth out of this site, the Triangle presents a perfect chance to give back to the fans and make the gameday experience even better.

>> Click here to see the Triangle Building design <<

Placing the Triangle Building far enough away from the stadium to create an outdoor concourse would be an enormous improvement to Wrigley. Boston's Yawkey Way & Camden's Eutaw Street are the most obvious examples of how successful this public / private arrangement can be. Fans stream in through these gates, arriving earlier to the game because there is simply more to arrive for. A spacious Seminary Avenue lined with gameday concessions sounds a bit more attractive than the current overcrowded concourses. Fill the new street with some interesting paving - maybe even include a nice Billy Goat carving for all of us to stomp on our way into the stadium.

The new Seminary Avenue gates would make entering the stadium easier, while an expanded Marquee Plaza at Clark & Addison would help relieve the crush of fans spilling out after games. This design also explores the option of a new parking structure & transportation center one block north of Wrigley - at Grace Street. While this could hold more than enough spaces to make up for those lost on the Triangle site, a huge influx of cars to Wrigleyville isn't going to solve much. More importantly it could serve as a new bus terminal for stadium shuttles to remote parking lots a few miles west. Anyone who has braved that 6-foot sidewalk between the first base wall & a line of buses along Addison knows there must be a better way to get fans home after the game.

Inside the Cubs Hall of Fame, we could really have some fun. Save a central room for our upcoming World Series trophy. Set up a room to match the manual centerfield scoreboard & let sugar-crazed kids run around rearranging the numbers from behind the wall. Build a replica of Harry's spacious WGN booth & let karaoke fans make their own attempt at singing The Stretch. (Based on most of my college friends, I apologize in advance for the terrible results an idea like that could have.) The Cubs sure have a unique and definitely entertaining history. Our Hall of Fame should be no different.

The upper deck Smirnoff Patio - on the roof behind home plate - was an awesome idea. Why did we stop there? Building out more patios along the length of the roof would create a true concourse for the upper deck, rather than the 4 or 5 beer carts hidden up there right now. Light steel-truss bridges from the existing dormers to the Triangle Building would make it's expansive rooftop terrace an integrated part of the stadium. Fans would scramble to meet up with friends and grab a burger and a beer up there before the game, with Wrigley to your back and an unobstructed view down Clark Street in front of your eyes. Extensive planter boxes could add color and texture to the roof, while also serving as benches for hundreds of hungry fans. On the practical end, it would give fans bathrooms - lots more bathrooms. But those infamous urinal troughs .. they stay.

A well-done Triangle Building could be a fountain of goodwill with fans. Entertainment for the kids, improved facilities for us big kids, and a nice spot to hang out before the game. Really for us, it's the space above and around the building holds the most hope. Let the team put the inside to use and find ways to win a few more games. In the meantime, we're just looking to have a good beer on the roof with some friends.