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Wrigley Field Construction Update: January 24

There was quite a bit of activity around the ballpark on Sunday.

By Al Yellon
  • 12:52 p.m. Saw this dust cloud, from Clark Street and Racine Avenue. Later determined that this was from road salt. The road salt used during the last snow storm has been pulverized, and turned into salt dust that was being kicked up by traffic - David Sameshima
  • 12:57 p.m. The northwest corner of the plaza building, at Waveland Avenue and Clark Street - David Sameshima
  • 12:59 p.m. The west side of the broadcast building, along Clifton Avenue - David Sameshima
  • 1:00 p.m. This was a gap in the fence that I used to take photos of the broadcast building. Gap now blocked by generators installed, along the northeast corner of the broadcast lot - David Sameshima
  • 1:01 p.m. The west side of the broadcast building - David Sameshima
  • 1:02 p.m. The only view I could get of this side of the broadcast lot - David Sameshima
  • 1:04 p.m. Waveland Avenue, next to the plaza building - David Sameshima
  • 1:06 p.m. Center field bleachers, viewed from Waveland - David Sameshima
  • 1:06 p.m. Waveland Avenue, next to the plaza building - David Sameshima
  • 1:07 p.m. Waveland Avenue, next to the plaza building - David Sameshima
  • 1:07 p.m. The west side of the broadcast building - David Sameshima
  • 1:09 p.m. The west side of the ballpark, along Clark Street - David Sameshima
  • 1:11 p.m. The south side of the plaza building, along Clark Street - David Sameshima
  • 1:11 p.m. The front of the ballpark, above the old ticket window area - David Sameshima
  • 1:11 p.m. The front of the ballpark, along the Clark Street side - David Sameshima
  • 1:14 p.m. Another view of the south side of the plaza building, along Clark Street - David Sameshima
  • 1:14 p.m. Another view of the front of the ballpark, along the Clark Street side - David Sameshima
  • 1:15 p.m. The west side of the ballpark - David Sameshima
  • 1:15 p.m. View of the groundskeepers' cottage, seen through an open work gate along Clark Street - David Sameshima
  • 1:16 p.m. Another view of the groundkeepers' cottage, seen through an open work gate along Clark Street - David Sameshima
  • 1:18 p.m. The front of the ballpark - David Sameshima
  • 1:19 p.m. The west side of the ballpark - David Sameshima
  • 1:20 p.m. The front of the ballpark - David Sameshima
  • 1:20 p.m. The Addison Street side of the front of the ballpark - David Sameshima
  • 1:21 p.m. The front of the ballpark - David Sameshima
  • 1:22 p.m. The front of the ballpark - David Sameshima
  • 1:23 p.m. The front of the ballpark - David Sameshima
  • 1:23 p.m. The south side of the plaza building - David Sameshima
  • 1:24 p.m. The south side of the ballpark - David Sameshima
  • 1:25 p.m. The south side of the ballpark - David Sameshima
  • 1:25 p.m. The Addison Street side of the front of the ballpark - David Sameshima
  • 1:27 p.m. Draft Kings Sports Zone - David Sameshima
  • 1:27 p.m. Gate D area - David Sameshima
  • 1:30 p.m. The center field bleachers - David Sameshima
  • 1:30 p.m. The center field bleachers - David Sameshima
  • 1:34 p.m. Outside the bleacher gate - David Sameshima
  • 1:36 p.m. Bleacher gate - David Sameshima
  • 1:38 p.m. Work ongoing underneath the left-field bleachers - David Sameshima
  • 1:38 p.m. The left-field bleachers, looking east down Waveland - David Sameshima
  • 1:39 p.m. The end of the third base line grandstand - David Sameshima
  • 1:41 p.m. Gate K/J area - David Sameshima
  • 1:42 p.m. The plaza building, viewed from the front of the firehouse on Waveland - David Sameshima
  • 1:43 p.m. The groundkeeper's cottage, viewed from Waveland - David Sameshima
  • 1:44 p.m. The broadcast building, viewed from the front of the firehouse on Waveland - David Sameshima
  • 1:44 p.m. The east side of the broadcast building - David Sameshima
  • 1:45 p.m. The east side of the broadcast building - David Sameshima
  • 1:46 p.m. The back of the broadcast building, built up right next to the last house along Clifton - David Sameshima
  • 1:47 p.m. Another view of the back of the broadcast building - David Sameshima
  • 1:47 p.m. Ballpark on the left, plaza building in the center and the broadcast building on the right - David Sameshima
  • 1:48 p.m. Tarps billowing in the wind, along the east side of the plaza building - David Sameshima
  • 1:50 p.m. Speakers covered, along the side of the left-field video board - David Sameshima

BCB's David Sameshima returned to Wrigley Field Sunday afternoon and sent this comprehensive photoset showing work being done and how far the offseason project has progressed.

Unfortunately, pretty much every part of the ballpark where we'd want to see the work going in is covered in shrouds, leaving us to guess about what's going on inside. There are a few things we can see, including the new steel that's quite evident along the front of the ballpark. That, you can see quite clearly in photos 14 and 15.

You can also see the boards covering up work being done underneath the center-field scoreboard (photo 8, and 34 and 35). A new patio area will be completed there by Opening Night.

Photos 19 and 20 show a colorful brick pattern on the groundskeeper's cottage. Previous renderings had shown that this structure will eventually be returned to a replica of its original look, red brick. Decades of whitewash will be removed.

There will eventually be another patio added at the west end of the left-field bleachers (north end of the third-base grandstand). As you can see in photos 24, 25 and 26, no work has begun on this area; it still looks as it did at the end of the 2015 season. There is work going on underneath the bleachers in this corner, though, as you can see by the shrouds in photos 38 and 39.

As of today we stand 75 days until Opening Night, April 11. With the good weather helping, it seems like the ballpark will be ready to open on time (and with plenty of bathrooms!).

We should have more photos here over the weekend.

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