The 1060 Project team temporarily removed the historic caretaker's house from the northwest corner of Wrigley Field. The house now rests in the north end of Wrigley Field's Blue Lot for preservation work, which will allow the construction crews to complete modifications inside Wrigley Field's Gate K while excavating a new two-story basement level for the planned office building and plaza in the lots immediately adjacent to the ballpark. The caretaker's house is scheduled to return to its original location by Opening Day of 2015.
As part of the Chicago Cubs goal to preserve historic elements of the ballpark, the exterior masonry shell of the building will be restored once the house is moved back into place. The front porch area will be rebuilt using a combination of salvaged and new bricks. The house will be placed on a new foundation installed as part of the plaza basement. Finally, a new roof system will be installed to replace the existing wood frame.
The house at 1053 Waveland Ave. was built during a major renovation of then-Cubs Park between the 1922-1923 seasons and reportedly cost $6,000. It was William Wrigley Jr.'s idea to build the home and offer it free of rent to Bobby Dorr, Cubs grounds superintendent from 1919 to 1957, if he would live at the park and watch over the property.
Dorr and his family accepted the offer and moved into the home in 1923. Considered one of the best grounds superintendents in baseball, Wrigley Field was often referred to as "Bobby Dorr's House." Dorr lived there until his death in 1957.
Following Dorr's passing, long-time Cubs traveling secretary Bob Lewis moved his office into the caretaker's house that he also called home. Upon Lewis' full retirement, the home served as an office for the traveling secretary and home secretary and storage for the next several years. Most recently, it has been used as office space for the concessionaires at the ballpark.