Rooftops called Wrigley charm

By Casey Bukro

January 8, 2003

The Cubs acquiesced to rooftop businesses overlooking Wrigley Field because they contribute to the "unique character of baseball" at the ballpark, according to a response by 13 rooftop business owners to a suit filed by the Cubs.

The Cubs on Dec. 16 charged that the rooftop owners steal the team's product, infringe on its copyright and "unjustly enrich themselves to the tune of millions of dollars each year."

The owner's response, filed Monday in U.S. District Court, said "the Cubs sat by and raised no objection" while the owners spent millions to upgrade their facilities and obtain licenses to operate.

"Since 1998, rooftop businesses have been run under City of Chicago licenses, which specifically authorize them to operate as sites for watching Cubs home games," said the 24-page document.

Lee A. Freeman, an attorney for the owners, described the document, which answers 49 allegations raised by the Cubs, as "an answer to the complaint, setting forth the relevant facts and in response to the allegations."

Cubs President Andy MacPhail could not be reached for comment on the rooftop operators' response. The Cubs are owned by Tribune Co., which also owns the Chicago Tribune.

The owners' response characterized their rooftop businesses as a long-accepted feature of the Wrigley Field experience.

"Because the games are, by their very nature, open air public performances, no one has ever questioned the right of people on the rooftops to watch the games," the owners response said, adding that "the Cubs never challenged anyone's right to watch from the adjacent buildings." The document said that guests of the rooftop owners have included "WGN." The document did not specify whether it was referring to WGN radio or television, both of which are subsidiaries of Tribune Broadcasting Co., which is owned by Tribune Co.

The owners' response said they will test the accuracy of the Cubs' contention that during the 2002 season, the team spent nearly $80 million on salaries of the ballplayers and millions more annually to maintain Wrigley Field.

The Cubs suit seeks unspecified monetary damages and a permanent injunction that presumably would put the rooftop enterprises out of business because it would bar them from charging admission "to view live baseball games played at Wrigley Field."

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