Cubs fans will cheer from 2 new roofs

October 28, 2005

BY FRAN SPIELMAN City Hall Reporter

Die-hard Cub fans who like to watch their favorite team from the rooftops along Waveland and Sheffield will have two more private clubs to choose from, under a zoning change advanced Thursday by a City Council committee.

Veteran rooftop owner Tom Gramatis plans to build two more private clubs on land at 3615-19 N. Sheffield that has long housed a Red Top Parking lot.

Both buildings will adhere to the existing 61-foot height limit. That's even though local Ald. Tom Tunney (44th) has a pending proposal to allow rooftop clubs overlooking Wrigley to build up as high as 69 feet to preserve their bird's-eye view of the ballpark even after a 1,790-seat bleacher expansion is built.

Protects the neighborhood

"If you're going to have elevators for handicapped access, if you're going to have two fully fireproofed, enclosed staircases, as required by the code, you need" a greater floor area ratio than current zoning allows, said Tom Moore, an attorney representing Gramatis.

"This is a temporary zoning change ...so that all of these safety measures can be put in. And then the agreement is to zone back and to make the building fit in to the existing residential character of the neighborhood."

Like other recent rooftop zoning changes, Gramatis has signed a Tunney-demanded "covenant" that protects the neighborhood by guaranteeing that there will be no change in front-yard setback and no bars or ticket brokers on the ground floor, Moore said.

http://www.suntimes.com/output/cubs/cst-nws-wrig28.html