WRIGLEYVILLE — As the Chicago Cubs head to Los Angeles to fight for a spot in the World Series, parking restrictions remain in place during away games this week.
With the series against the Los Angeles Dodgers tied 1-1, the Cubs will play three away games this week, with the first chance for either team to clinch coming Thursday.
Despite the games taking place in California, parking restrictions are in place starting noon Tuesday through 4 a.m. Friday. If neither team wins four games by then, the series will wrap up at Wrigley Field this weekend.
As they were during the National League Division Series, parking restrictions are in place around Wrigleyville for the duration of the championship series.
Until 4 a.m. Friday, parking is not allowed on the following streets:
• Clark Street from Irving Park Road to School Street
• Sheffield Avenue from Roscoe Street to Irving Park
• Addison Street from Halsted Street to Southport Avenue and on the north side from Southport to Ashland Avenue
• Racine Avenue from Belmont Avenue to Grace/Clark
• Irving Park from Clark to Seminary Avenue
• Eddy Street from Clark to the alley west of Clark
• Cornelia Avenue from Clark to the alley west of Clark
• Newport Avenue from Clark to the alley west of Clark
While Chicago Police relaxed restrictions during away games of the NLDS, that won't be the case this time around, Ald. Tom Tunney said in his weekly 44th Ward email.
A man argues with a Chicago Police officer along the barricade on the west side of Addison Street at Clark Street. Police blocked off the intersection during a 2015 Cubs playoff game. [DNAinfo/Ariel Cheung]
The restrictions ensure emergency access to the ballpark, staging of support vehicles and help with crowd control.
Sheffield Avenue from Addison to Waveland Avenue and Waveland from Sheffield to Clark will close to traffic about three hours before games.
Residential parking and tow zone restrictions will be strictly enforced.
Tunney has advised fans not to drive anywhere near Wrigley Field. The CTA will increase Red Line service and operate Yellow Line trains to Skokie until midnight.
Extra buses for the No. 80 Irving Park and No. 152 Addison lines will be in place during home games, although they're often packed for long periods after the game.
Fans outside Wrigley Field celebrate after the Cubs beat the Cardinals to win the NLDS in 2015. [DNAinfo/Jon Hansen]
The Cubs also provide free bicycle parking and a free remote lot at 3900 N. Rockwell St. during home games, complete with shuttles to take fans to and from the game.
"I recommend you do not bring your car anywhere near the ballpark," Tunney said.
Cubs spokesman Julian Green warned fans to be wary of scalpers and counterfeit tickets. He also said the team will not replace tickets if they're lost or stolen.
Pictures of tickets should not be posted online because scammers could try to reprint them.
The tickets, he noted, are "extremely valuable."
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Police are asking grocery and liquor stores in the neighborhood to avoid selling Champagne bottles, said Bennett Lawson, chief of staff for Tunney. That's likely to prevent a massive glass bottle pileup like this scene from the 2015 Blackhawks championship celebration:
Officer just busted a huge pile of bottles. "that's much harder to clean up!" Other guy says. pic.twitter.com/8XxD7Aj3q7
— Ariel Cheung (@arielfab) June 16, 2015
Bars will use plastic cups during games for similar reasons, Lawson said. Officials have advised bars to avoid overcrowding and expect occupancy checks during the postseason.
While Wrigleyville remained relatively calm during the NLDS, police are ramping up for grander celebrations this week.
There was a huge presence of police manpower during postseason home games, with clusters of officers grouped along Clark and Addison streets and others in plainclothes or unmarked police vehicles.
Police — which typically include Town Hall District Cmdr. Robert Cesario on big game nights — have often used the option to block off portions of Clark and Addison toward the end of games with large crowds.
During last year's postseason, officers occasionally barricaded all four sides of the intersection, keeping exiting Wrigley Field attendees from the Clark Street bars.
Rambunctious fans have climbed traffic poles in the past (also a common spectacle at music festivals), but only 39 were arrested last year over nine postseason games.
Hoping to divert some traffic away from the ballpark, officials have set a drop-off and pickup zone for limousines and ride-hailing services like Uber and Lyft on Irving Park Road between Clark and Seminary.
Taxis will load in the 3300 block of Clark Street.
The Cubs and Wrigley Field are 95 percent owned by an entity controlled by a trust established for the benefit of the family of Joe Ricketts, owner and CEO of DNAinfo.com. Joe Ricketts has no direct involvement in the management of the iconic team.
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