deeply cautious approach and an ever-shifting political landscape prompted the Boston Red Sox to move at a snail's pace over the last two years, hesitating on numerous occasions before coming out yesterday with plans for a new ballpark.
Last week, Red Sox chief executive John Harrington was forced to adopt a nimble, rapid-response style similar to a modern political campaign to give the plans any hope of succeeding. And that strategy will probably be necessary in the months ahead, as major hurdles remain.
It's a familiar axiom in politics - and one well-known by top Red Sox consultant John Sasso, who managed Michael Dukakis's 1988 presidential campaign - that if a candidate doesn't define himself for voters, his opponent will, and not in flattering terms. The same lesson applied for the Red Sox in the last few days.
Preservationists arguing to save Fenway Park were gaining momentum, making a case for expanding the existing 87-year-old ballpark. Sasso and Mayor Thomas M. Menino urged Harrington to grab control of the debate, explaining why Fenway can't be salvaged and showing how great the new ballpark could be.
Supporters of the new ballpark hope the team has permanently overcome its institutional caution. Guided by Sasso and developer Robert F. Walsh, the team faces what sports arena expert Larry Moulter, the man who shepherded the construction of the FleetCenter, describes as a ''three-dimensional chess game'' in getting the project completed.
The minefield of differing constituencies, public views, and political realities facing the club include:
The long shadow of the FleetCenter. The last old sports arena to succumb to the wrecking ball was Boston Garden. It was replaced by the FleetCenter, which is routinely criticized for its high ticket prices and lack of charm. That gives preservationists ammunition to argue that new is not necessarily better - and that Boston should buck the trend and remain as one of two US cities (along with Chicago, with Wrigley Field) to retain its old-fashioned ballpark. The Red Sox counter that Fenway's infrastructure is beyond repair, but the point will have to be made more persuasively in the weeks ahead.
The wild card of the Patriots deal. The $70 million legislative package to keep the Patriots in Foxborough cuts two ways. On the one hand, the Red Sox might reasonably expect to get at least what the Patriots are getting. But Beacon Hill leaders - most notably House Speaker Thomas M. Finneran - will doubtless take heat from some quarters for doling out taxpayer money so freely after two years of saying sports teams weren't a top priority for such expenditures. At the least, the Red Sox are expected to ask for $50 million from the state for infrastructure and transportation improvements, but possibly they will argue that more money is needed because working in an urban setting is more expensive.
Neighborhood opposition. The Red Sox have taken great pains to share their plans with community groups before going to the media, so there are no surprises. But team-neighborhood relations remain strained, and the most vocal opponents are poised to pepper the project with lawsuits and bad publicity - starting with a possible protest at the All-Star Game in July. Opponents also could attempt to get Fenway Park designated as a historic landmark, blocking revenues from new development on the property that the team badly needs. The team's chief goal is to convince residents that they are involved in the project and that the new ballpark could actually improve traffic and parking conditions on game days.
Keeping City Hall on board. Menino, who supports the new ballpark, is sensitive to being perceived as too pro-development in the midst of a building boom in Boston that extends from the air rights over the Massachusetts Turnpike to the Seaport. The Red Sox need assistance from the city to acquire properties on the site of the new park, and any money spent in that endeavor is sure to spark a debate on how city tax dollars are better spent on services such as schools. Because Walsh is a longtime friend of Menino's, the mayor is also worried about the project being portrayed as an insider deal. All those factors - along with Menino's record of preserving historic buildings - could neutralize the mayor, forcing him to keep a lower profile instead of being a vocal cheerleader.
Councilor at Large Stephen J. Murphy said that a behind-the-scenes posture for Menino has been adopted in recent days. The mayor made it clear that the Red Sox, and not City Hall, ''needed to do a better job of explaining why Fenway can't be saved, and to get out with the plans already.''
The City Council is expected to hold hearings on the new ballpark and might have to approve any street reconfigurations, including, effectively, the ''taking'' of Yawkey Way. That creates yet another arena for the Red Sox to operate in with City Council elections looming this fall.
''There are certainly degrees of receptiveness,'' Murphy said. ''I don't think anybody in this building wants to lose the Red Sox, so that can't be an option. But we do want to insist on a full public process, and the people who have to live with this have to be at the table. That's what you'll see us standing up for.''
The city's strong economy and building boom might work against the Red Sox, as some residents worry the city is moving too far too fast.
''There's almost too much going on right now,'' Murphy said. ''We're in a building frenzy.''
