Mouthsider

Per Alderman Nicole Lee, the meeting will be tomorrow at 6:30pm in the Pui Tak Center. Ishbia and Amtrak representatives will be there. Exciting stuff.

It appears Lot C will not be used for access purposes, but I’d guess Amtrak will still require part of it for staging purposes during construction (short-term).

My bad. I mentally listed that under “ideas that have already been mentioned”, since they’ll likely need to extend their lease til 2033ish.

Midwest Maintenance FacilityMidwest Maintenance FacilityAmtrak and Canal Edge are building a modern maintenance facility to support passenger rail in Chicago and across the Midwest.Also, I found this site through that Crain’s article. This contains the most publicly-available information officially endorsed by Amtrak so far, even detailing the rough size/layout of the maintenance facilities.

https://archive.is/J43sN Article from Crain’s about next steps for Rate Field. Not a lot of new information, though still a good read. Much of this reaffirms ideas that have already been mentioned throughout this thread.

Sullivan’s notion that “Bridgeport would now be like River North” is ridiculous and deserves all the clowning it is getting, but the idea that the current stadium’s site was never fully realized is a valid point to raise. Reinsdorf and the ISFA were content with the sea of parking lots, and, in another world, I’m sure the site could have lived up to being the Wrigleyville of the White Sox if development was ever the goal. McCuddy’s being preserved might’ve encouraged Schaller’s to never close, maybe even move closer to the stadium, which might‘ve meant those two, Cork and Kerry, Turtle’s, and potentially others would have all been known as iconic “Comiskeyville” bars. But that’s only what might have transpired in another world. In this world, there is nothing surrounding the field besides parking lots that are only ever used during White Sox home games. The fans deserve a better experience, the team deserves a better reputation, and Bridgeport deserves to finally have the freedom to put something on those empty lots. To those problems, Ishbia’s vision is the only viable solution.

Crain’s has reported Ishbia to be in “advanced talks” with BNSF regarding their yard. I’d pencil it in as happening.

I haven’t seen reports about anything other than the South Loop. It seems Ishbia’s been hunting this spot since he made that deal with Reinsdorf. It’s very likely all or nothing, and both Ishbia and Amtrak (as well as countless Sox fans) would not be happy with the latter.

Yeah, this seems like his way of saying (to Bridgeporters specifically), “The White Sox may be leaving their neighborhood, but at least they’re not going far!” which is a relevant point to make considering the concurrent situation with the Bears. I agree with the multiple users that have commented about Ishbia’s investments so far being a telltale sign that he’s committed to staying in Chicago. After all, he already told us so himself:

Shea Stadium was home to the Mets and Jets. It made sense to decrease the capacity for a baseball-specific stadium. Considering the Yankees are currently averaging 41k this season, I think the Mets’ capacity is fitting. Since Ishbia’s plan is focused around drawing in more fans and tourists, I think lowering capacity would be counterproductive to that goal, but there’s no knowing until his plans are finalized. After all, the stadium hasn’t even been professionally designed yet.

If the potentially expanded audience and influx of tourism hasn’t been factored into the capacity, that’s a blunder imo. The Rate may not have the best average attendance, but Ishbia’s new stadium alone should provide a bump. The Angels and Mets are averaging 33k this year. By those metrics, a >40k capacity would be appropriate.

With the way the Bears have been “negotiating”, 2033 Bridgeport might as well be added to the list of viable sites.

I wager this ends with Amtrak “conceding” to conduct and publish an environmental study, the anti-Amtrak movement tapering off, and all plans moving forward as scheduled. It’s not like they’d have to, but Amtrak conducting that study seems to be the critical piece that would kill any momentum against them.

I forgot Mat spearheaded those changes. The Suns’ $2 menu is incredible. I’m hoping $5 Tuesdays are kept, but if Justin is as generous as Mat, concessions may actually get cheaper.

As usual, your knowledge continues to exceed mine. Thank you! It’s crazy to think that CSX still needs to send in an employee every time Amtrak needs to raise/lower the St. Charles Air Line, considering they only own the B&OCT. Seems to me like a predicament they’d rather to get out of… Ishbia, you know what to do.

I’m hoping so. It would definitely inject the area with some instant character and add some grittiness to it. The pedestrian bridge on the recent renderings looks so sterile.

I believe the St. Charles Air Line Bridge is still in use (sometimes). I read a piece forever ago about implications for Amtrak if they could upgrade it and get it fully functioning again. If so, I’m not sure if it could be of use for this development. However, in the same piece, I became educated on the B&OCT Bridge, the abandoned bridge literally right next to it. That one’s been out of use for so long that it currently lacks a counterweight and doesn’t even have rails leading up to it. I don’t think any rail companies are interested in turning it back online again, either (CSX might own it? But it’s unusable in its current state). If Ishbia’s going to do a rail-to-trail conversion, he should go after that one. It’s a sleeping giant.

37th and Honore is the officially designated geographic center of Chicago. By that logic, we were never on the southside to begin with. Assuming the organization continues to define itself and its fans as South Siders, I don’t mind moving a few blocks north. If anything, that’ll just expand our turf. The Loop will officially be known as White Sox territory!

Would be a killer site for the Bears. For the White Sox? Not for me personally.

In terms of North—South, I’ve always heard of Roosevelt being the “cultural” boundary. If you pick Cermak, you’re essentially sawing Chinatown in half. I couldn’t tell you where the West Side is supposed to start (and no, State St. does not count).

Correct. Ishbia’s group has begun actively investigating their next steps:

Hitting dingers into the Chicago River would be for the tourists. Hitting dingers into the Cal-Sag would be for the Southsiders.

Though the LaSalle Street Station is close, I do hope for a Rock Island station at the 78. Getting off right next to McDonald’s Park and taking a short walk over the river to the Railyards would be delightful. I‘d imagine a Rock Island stop is something Mansueto would be more involved with than Ishbia, similarly to how Ishbia would be more involved with a stop for the BNSF line than Mansueto. Hopefully those two put their heads together and encourage Metra to do this.

Looks like you folk would be able to exit at the 11th/Museum Campus station and take a stroll down Roosevelt. A 15-20ish minute walk depending on how fast you walk. Not bad at all.

That explains the lack of exploding scoreboard and pinwheels. Although it could look completely different, I wonder which elements will carry over. I’d have to think the direction of the stadium and the narrow right field for splash hits will remain. I do hope the final design caps the railroad, though. Even though the pedestrian bridges are nice, covering the railyard entirely would make the whole development look much better.