Cicero offers land and lucrative deal to lure Cubs from Chicago

CICERO, Ill., May 7, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Town President Larry Dominick today said he is proposing in a letter to Cubs owner Tom Ricketts that the baseball team relocate to Cicero in exchange for free land, more night games and expanded advertising options the team needs.

Dominick, a lifelong Cubs fan, said the Cubs have failed to win the World Series not because the owner of an old goat was insulted years ago but because Wrigley Field is an outdated stadium holding the Cubs and fans back.

Cicero, on Chicago's western border, offers the Cubs the ability to build a modern stadium with all the assets to make it one of the country's best baseball parks.

"Cicero is willing to give the Rickett's family what they need to make the Cubs World Series contenders every year, not just once in a century," Dominick said.

"What's holding the Cubs back are the restrictions of an outmoded stadium. The Cubs are playing baseball in a straightjacket. If they were to come to Cicero, the restrictions would be lifted. We'd be talking about World Series contenders."

The Cubs have not won a World Series in more than 104 years, the longest championship drought of any major North American sports team.

Dominick said Cicero has more than 50 acres of available land and allow them to build a new stadium with significantly increased seating, more parking and the opportunity to generate more advertising revenues.

"The benefits are limitless," Dominick said, saying he believes the Town Board would support his proposals.

Dominick said the Cubs could plan 81 night games a year, rather than being restricted to less than two-dozen each year. A new stadium, he said, would give the Cubs the environment in which they could play professional baseball rather than dealing with political hindrances that have held the team back.

"A new, unrestricted jumbo-tron and advertising boards would bring in new revenues for the team," Dominick said. "The team could keep the Chicago name and sell stadium naming-rights."

A new ballpark could house more vendors, he said, create more jobs, allow more parking and produce tax dollars for the state and the regional economy.

"Cicero is far more accessible to Cubs fans than Wrigley Field," Dominick said.

"We're willing to work with the Ricketts family to give them what they need to build a first class stadium that a World Series Team needs."

Dominick suggested Wrigley Field could be turned into a museum for anything, including goats.

"Cicero is one of the best communities in Chicagoland's suburbs. We've attracted more businesses than any other community because we are safe, we have the employee base and we have the land that businesses need," Dominick said. Since 2005, Cicero has attracted more than two -dozen new businesses, including Wirtz and Wal-Mart.

"We're serious and we hope the Ricketts family will consider this as a chance for the team's success."

SOURCE Town of Cicero