When Cubs fans get to Wrigleyville for this season’s home-opener Monday against the Pittsburgh Pirates, they’ll see changes all around them — in the surrounding neighborhood and inside Wrigley Field itself.
Here’s a look at some of the big projects around the Cubs’ ballpark, which are at various stages of completion.
Hotel Zachary
The major addition to the neighborhood is Hotel Zachary, a 175-room hotel across from Wrigley Field.
Opened a week before Opening Day, the hotel is also set to be home to restaurants including Matthias Merges’ Mordecai cocktail bar, the second outpost of Chicago’s famed Big Star taqueria and the West Town Bakery and Tap.
The building also is home to a new McDonald’s. The fast-food chain’s previous location was demolished to make way for the hotel.
The hotel has an underground garage, with parking going for $65 for special events — like baseball games.
Wrigley Field
The biggest changes as a result of off-season renovations at the ballpark came behind home plate and around the field itself.
The swanky 600-seat American Airlines 1914 Club debuts Opening Day behind home plate. Premier ticket members also have a new entrance near the marquee.
There also are two new elevators nearby to access the upper levels. And fans might notice the dugouts are wider.
The Cubs invited media to see some of the changes Friday afternoon:
And check out this time-lapse video of the ballpark renovations, courtesy of EarthCam:
Addison & Clark
This massive, 2.5-acre project across from Wrigley Field is expected to be completed by the end of baseball season. Tenants can start moving in to apartments starting in August.
The project is expected to be finished in October and will include a 10-screen CMX Cinemas, a Lucky Strike bowling alley, a Shake Shack, 7-Eleven stores on both ends of the development, a Harley-Davidson store and a baseball apparel store called Baseballism.
Cubs office building
This building and the Park at Wrigley debuted at Clark and Waveland last season. Already home to a Starbucks and the Lucky Dorr beer and restaurant, Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams opened a location in the building in time for Opening Day.
Taco Bell site
Taco Bell’s lease ends in October, meaning it’s likely to remain open through the regular season (though probably not the playoffs). Mid-America Real Estate Group announced plans in February to replace it with a three-story building that will be home to a Planet Granite climbing gym. Work on that project, which requires a zoning change, hasn’t begun.
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