There are two things that can absolutely be said about Chicagoans, no matter how easygoing or Midwesternly sportsman-like we are: we love our city and we are resistant to see it change.
Today (10:00am this morning, in fact) marks a significant change in the Chicago skyline: the renaming of the Sears Tower, the tallest building in the United States, to the Willis Tower, a reflection of its newest major tenants. From articles in local newspapers to petitions across Facebook, the renaming has caused an uproar amongst Chicagoans who take their traditions seriously.
Will we still stubbornly call the building located at 233 South Wacker Drive by its old appellation? Will Chicagoans grow to love the Willis Tower, or as Joe Plumeri, the CEO of Willis Group Holdings, suggests, “The Big Willie?” This is certainly not the first time, and will definitely not be the last, that Chicago residents have to face reprinting their tourist maps and catching themselves as they give directions. From the renaming of Comiskey Park in 2003 to US Cellular Field, to the upcoming debate about Wrigley Field and its sale and possible renaming, we live in a city of change. Or, at the very least, we live in a city that loves an argument. I still run across city residents who will give me 20 minutes of monologue on what a mistake the expansion of Soldier’s Field was, with its modernized “spaceship” landing atop the classical architecture. I’ve personally gotten used to it, but some die-hard Chicagoans probably never will. And let’s not even talk about Macy’s.
Something to consider though: from the days of the Great Chicago Fire, all the way up to the creation of Millennium Park, Chicago is a place of growth and change. The home page of rubloff.com itself shows this better than anything I’ve seen before: our lovely city grows and grows every year, continuing to challenge the sky for dominance, but always remains home to some of the best people and places in the world. Would we be less proud of our city if its sports teams were named the Chicago Orphans (which the Cubs were from 1897 to 1903) and the Chicago Staleys (1921’s precursor to the Bears)? Would our cheers be any quieter? Today, the Willis Tower is still one of the greatest representations of over a century of innovation in American architecture, and I couldn’t be prouder to see it grace our skyline. To appropriate a well-worn cliche, this building, by any other name, would always stand as tall.
