Page 20 - Security Today, May/June 2023

Revamping Wrigley Field The Chicago Cubs improve security at historic ballpark By Rick Taylor When talking about baseball in the United States, it’s hard not to think of the Chica- go Cubs and Wrigley Field. With a history spanning more than 100 years, the Chicago Cubs are one of the most recognized teams in professional sports. Every season, millions of passionate and loyal fans flock to home games at Wrigley Field in Chicago’s Lakeview neighbor- hood. But Wrigley Field isn’t like any other ballpark. Built in 1914, it’s the second oldest ballpark in the majors. Living up to its nickname ‘The Friendly Confines,’ Wrigley Field warmly wel- comes all to experience a genuine all-American baseball game. GETTING READY TO MODERNIZE BALLPARK SECURITY Providing fans and players with updated amenities within the more than 100-year-old ballpark, the Chicago Cubs launched a restora- tion and expansion project in 2014, known as the 1060 Project. The 1060 Project was designed to ensure the viability of the ballpark for future generations of Cubs fans, while preserving the beauty, charm and historic features fans have come to know and love. The 1060 Project also expanded the footprint of Wrigley Field and the surrounding campus. For the Chicago Cubs security team that meant keeping people safe well beyond Wrigley Field itself. They also needed to oversee security at the neighboring venues, parking lots, and the Chicago Cubs front office. Doug Lindsay, vice president of Security for the Chicago Cubs, summed up the top challenges: “We have a facility that’s more than 100 years old and nestled in the middle of a residential neighborhood. “We need to ensure people can get here and have a great expe- rience and the neighborhood remains safe. It was also difficult to work around the old building infrastructure to upgrade our secu- rity systems. The 1060 Project gave us an opportunity to modern- ize our technology stack,” Lindsay said. SELECTING GENETEC SECURITY CENTER, OMNICAST AND STREAMVAULT After the completion of the 1060 Project, the Chicago Cubs sought to enhance its security technology. Following a review, the team found multiple security systems that had been installed over the years affected the safety and security team’s investigation pro- cesses. The organization also sought a solution that would enable it to remain compliant with video retention requirements well into the future. They needed a scalable platform that would also 20 MAY/JUNE 2023 | SECURITY TODAY FACILITY SECURITY