maurice
08-10-2004, 12:15 PM
Today's Trib (Metro section, below the fold) reports that the city refused to issue permits for past repairs at the Urinal and requested "additional information." At this point, in typical Trib fashion, the article switches gears and creates the illusion of coverage by filling out the space with unrelated information and background information. In conclusion, the article notes that they "obtained a permit for the netting installation." How thoughtful of them.
The Sun-Times prominent article (http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/cst-nws-wrig10.html) on the same subject clarifies that the permits were not issued, because there is no documentary proof that any significant repairs were ever done. Instead, the Trib gave the city some pictures:
"We don't permit pretty pictures. We need the stuff behind it," said an exasperated Buildings Commissioner Stan Kaderbek. Without the backup information demanded by City Hall, Kaderbek said there's no way of knowing how much work was actually done to repair potentially hazardous bleacher and pedestrian ramp conditions outlined in a 2001 engineering report commissioned by the Cubs. "The number I read was a million" dollars a year, the commissioner said, referring to the money the Cubs claim to have spent on Wrigley repairs. "It better be something close to that." . . .
Ald. Bernard Stone (50th), chairman of the City Council's Buildings Committee, accused the Cubs of "stalling" as part of an elaborate cover-up that began with the first of three incidents of falling concrete at Wrigley over a six-week period. "I don't think they've done a thing other than paint the seats," Stone said. "I think they lied. I absolutely believe they completely ignored all the work they were supposed to do." The alderman noted that, during an annual licensing review of "public places of amusement," the Cubs' own stadium manager acknowledged that the last engineering report done at Wrigley was three years ago. "If you're going to do work, you'd have an engineer check the job site before you do the work. They did not, according to their own employee's statement," Stone said. "It's an indication that they didn't have any intention of doing any work in three years and that any statement that they did work without a permit is an absolute falsehood."
:giantsnail
The Sun-Times prominent article (http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/cst-nws-wrig10.html) on the same subject clarifies that the permits were not issued, because there is no documentary proof that any significant repairs were ever done. Instead, the Trib gave the city some pictures:
"We don't permit pretty pictures. We need the stuff behind it," said an exasperated Buildings Commissioner Stan Kaderbek. Without the backup information demanded by City Hall, Kaderbek said there's no way of knowing how much work was actually done to repair potentially hazardous bleacher and pedestrian ramp conditions outlined in a 2001 engineering report commissioned by the Cubs. "The number I read was a million" dollars a year, the commissioner said, referring to the money the Cubs claim to have spent on Wrigley repairs. "It better be something close to that." . . .
Ald. Bernard Stone (50th), chairman of the City Council's Buildings Committee, accused the Cubs of "stalling" as part of an elaborate cover-up that began with the first of three incidents of falling concrete at Wrigley over a six-week period. "I don't think they've done a thing other than paint the seats," Stone said. "I think they lied. I absolutely believe they completely ignored all the work they were supposed to do." The alderman noted that, during an annual licensing review of "public places of amusement," the Cubs' own stadium manager acknowledged that the last engineering report done at Wrigley was three years ago. "If you're going to do work, you'd have an engineer check the job site before you do the work. They did not, according to their own employee's statement," Stone said. "It's an indication that they didn't have any intention of doing any work in three years and that any statement that they did work without a permit is an absolute falsehood."
:giantsnail