Living in the Ballpark? By Trevor Walker

     One of the reasons fans love Wrigley Field is because it appears to have been dropped into an otherwise typical neighborhood on the North Side of Chicago. The rooftop apartments beyond the ivy-covered bleachers add character and charm to the ballpark setting. Chicago Cubs ownership should have purchased those properties along Waveland and Sheffield avenues long ago. Too bad for them. The Lansing (Mich.) Lugnuts and the city that owns their ballpark want to take a page from Wrigley's book and construct perhaps 100 apartments literally inside of the stadium. By way of a $22 million project split down the middle with public and private funds, the Midwest League's Class A club for the Toronto Blue Jays and the city seek to expand and upgrade Cooley Law School Stadium in downtown Lansing, the state capital. The plan, called the "Outfield," would be part of a bigger plan to upgrade parts of downtown as a whole. The stadium itself was opened in 1996 and needs upgrading regardless, ownership says. Major league star Carlos Beltran played there when the Lugnuts franchise belonged to the Kansas City Royals.
      If the city council approves, the project would be done around the next two off-seasons and be completed by the opening of the 2016 season, the Lansing State Journal reports. It's really a neat idea that Lugnuts owner Tom Dickson has brought forth. Other than Wrigley, the closest thing in the majors might be the B&O Warehouse at Camden Yards. Have you ever wanted to live in a ballpark? This would be your first chance, legally.