State agency expected to discuss possible Chicago White Sox stadium move
The future of Rate Field is back in the spotlight on Wednesday.
The state agency that owns the ballpark must consider what comes next for Rate Field as the White Sox explore a potential move and a major construction project threatens to reduce parking.
The Illinois Sports Facilities Authority's 2024 annual report shows nearly $460 million in outstanding stadium debt. That debt helped finance Rate Field, which opened in 1991, as well as renovations to Soldier Field in the early 2000s.
Wednesday's public agenda includes the agency's financial results, its preliminary budget, and future capital repairs at Rate Field.
The meeting comes as the White Sox consider a proposed new ballpark along the Chicago River on the opposite bank from The 78 development in the South Loop. The Chicago Fire soccer team is building a stadium in The 78.
The White Sox's lease at state-owned Rate Field runs through 2029, with an option to extend it through 2030.
The proposed new ballpark would be built on land Amtrak currently uses for a railyard. Amtrak plans to move those operations to a new, round-the-clock maintenance facility near Rate Field.
That construction could reduce parking around the stadium while the Sox are still playing there.
Residents are also questioning how Amtrak's project was cleared to move forward without a full environmental impact study.
Last week, a few hundred people gathered near Rate Field to protest Amtrak's plans and the "categorical exclusion" from the U.S. Department of Transportation that would likely allow the train operator to move forward with the new maintenance facility without a full environmental assessment.
Ald. Nicole Lee (11th) said a project this large deserves more scrutiny.
"The categorical exclusion is a huge red flag," Lee said last week. "A development of this size should not be able to move forward without a full environmental impact assessment."
The board's published agenda does not specifically list the White Sox proposal or Amtrak's project. However, the meeting includes public comment, and both issues could come up.
Wednesday's board meeting starts at 10 a.m. at Rate Field.
Amtrak will then hold its own community meeting on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. in Chinatown.
Rate Field — originally known as new Comiskey Park and later U.S. Cellular Field and Guaranteed Rate Field — is located across 35th Street from the former site of old Comiskey Park, the White Sox's home from 1910 until 1990. Rate Field was financed by the State of Illinois after White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf had threatened to move the team to the Tampa Bay Area in Florida back in 1988.
