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| Were wheelchairs at ballpark even contemplated in so-called good ol' days? |
In this case, a 20-year-old Cubs fan whose father is a prominent attorney is suing the ball club because he doesn’t like the way renovations of Wrigley Field in recent years have altered the seating made available to people who must use wheelchairs to get around.
THIS
PARTICULAR FAN used to like to sit in the space out beyond the right-field
fence between the bleachers and the foul pole – on the Sheffield Avenue side of
the building, to be exact.
The
Cubs used to use that space to allow wheelchair-bound fans to park themselves
during ball games and watch from their own seats. The fan says in his lawsuit
that he enjoyed being able to sit out in the sunshine (of a day game,
presumably) while watching a ballgame.
But
with the renovations of recent years, that space has now been filled in with an
outdoor bar that’s supposed to add to the ambiance of the ball park – while
making it easier for bleacher fanatics to get themselves an over-priced drink
(everything associated with ball parks these days is overpriced, so that’s not
a slander aimed only at the Cubs).
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| Wrigley portion focus of lawsuit. Photos by Gregory Tejeda |
His
lawsuit also points out that the Cubs used to have a space in the grandstand
behind home plate where wheelchair-bound fans could park themselves. It
actually put them in front of many other fans, which meant the disabled got a
particularly-prime location within the Wrigley Field seating.
NOW,
THE LAWSUIT contends, wheelchair-bound people must park themselves in a spot
several rows further up – and when the bulk of Cubbie fandom chooses to stand and
cheer, it becomes impossible for the wheelchair-bound to see anything!
What
an outrage!!!!!
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| How do disabled maneuver the crowds? |
Although
I couldn’t help but notice many people using the Internet and the Chicago
Tribune to comment (anonymously, of course) about the lawsuit in negative ways;
trying to claim that this particular wheelchair-bound fan (he’s coped with
muscular dystrophy for half his life) is merely upset he can’t get a prime spot
in the ballpark.
Doesn’t
he realize life ain’t fair? Which is a rather cold-hearted approach to take
toward life.
MY
OWN REACTION is to wonder just how far this particular lawsuit will go in the
courts. Since it seems based on the premise that the Cubs ought to have to undo
many of the changes made in the structure in recent years – whose purpose was
to add private clubs in the ball park and also some prime seating that could go
for top dollar.
Are
the Cubs really trying to bolster their financial bottom line by reducing the
number of disabled who can enter the ball park?
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| The Sout' Side's wheelchair view of the playing field |
When
I’ve noticed them at ballgames, it’s almost like they’re part of the existing
crowd – only they brought their own chairs. Which means I’d hope those fans
would get some sort of financial break on ticket prices – although I’m not
naïve enough to think that’s so.
BUT
THEN AGAIN, I’ve heard Cubs fans dump on the White Sox because the ball club
puts those with wheelchairs behind the grandstand seats, rather than amidst
them.
Although
personally, I’d think that the heavy presence of elevators at Guaranteed Rate
Field (unlike the century-old Wrigley Field) would make it much easier to
maneuver around.
But
as I wrote easier, we’ll see how seriously the courts take this lawsuit.
Because I’m sure the Cubs will argue they’re playing ballgames in a century-old
building that, if you truly maintained its historic character, was never
intended to accommodate wheelchairs.
Frivolous
lawsuit? Or discrimination against the disabled? We’ll wait and see.
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