CHICAGO (CelebrityAccess) Brian Hopkins, the Chicago Alderman overseeing the proposed Lincoln Yards project, has released as “staggering” email that appears to kill the massive entertainment district that Live Nation would be building in the district.
Ald. Brian Hopkins has called upon the developer of the project to overhaul a large portion of the $6 billion project, which would remove the 20,000-seat soccer stadium and the multiple venues proposed by Live Nation, according to Crain’s Chicago Business.
“I have informed planning officials at Sterling Bay, the developer of the proposed Lincoln Yards project, that I am not in support of a major sports and entertainment arena within either of their two planned development districts now under consideration,” Hopkins reportedly wrote in an email to his constituents Jan. 8. “I have further requested that the identified site of the proposed stadium . . . be repurposed as open and recreational park space.
The requested changes to the developer’s plan would reportedly be incorporated with a revised master plan for Lincoln Yards and submitted to the community for review, Hopkins wrote.
“The process is ongoing and will continue to be refined over many years, if not decades,” he said.
Hopkins’ office took a survey, and more than half the respondents were opposed to the soccer stadium because of the “allocated parking and pedestrian congestion.”
“It just became increasingly clear that there really was a consensus against the stadium idea,” Hopkins said today, noting the opposition was based on density and the impact of 20,000 people traveling to and from a major event venue in a residential neighborhood.
“We know what that looks like—(Wrigley Field) provides exhibit A,” he said. “The neighborhoods around Wrigley Field tolerate that inconvenience because they know what they signed up for. The residents of Lincoln Park didn’t sign up for such a program.”
