The Chicago Cubs are looking to put a new beacon up above Wrigley Field: a 360-square-foot Toyota sign to loom about 50 feet above the left-field bleachers and glow for the neighbors to see. The Cubs have agreed to a four-year moratorium on future ads to prepare for the sign. Toyota’s Cubs sponsorship will generate over $2 million over the next three years.
Some rooftop-owning Chicagoans fear a city approval of the big Toyota sign could set a precedent for future outfield signs, which could have a negative impact on their businesses and the general landscape. The Cubs plan to place the sign in a way which doesn’t block views from rooftops, but if the Zoning Board of Appeals blocks the sign, the Cubs could be forced to take it down.
There’s a lot happening in the world. Through it all, Marketplace is here for you.
You rely on Marketplace to break down the world’s events and tell you how it affects you in a fact-based, approachable way. We rely on your financial support to keep making that possible.
Your donation today powers the independent journalism that you rely on. For just $5/month, you can help sustain Marketplace so we can keep reporting on the things that matter to you.
