Daley Wants Tribute to Walter Payton
Written by DJ Special Blend from Chicago on September 17, 2009
CHICAGO, IL – Mayor Richard Daley today said he wants to see a tribute in “some way” to Walter Payton and is having Chicago Park District officials continue to meet with the family of the late Bears’ great to determine where and how.
The family has suggested putting a statue outside Soldier Field, but park district officials have balked, saying the stadium is meant to honor military veterans. Daley was asked about the impasse by reporters today.
“They’ll be able to try and figure out what they want to accomplish in regards to Walter Payton, whether it’s a park, whether it’s a statue, or it’s something we can work with,” the mayor said at a ceremonial opening of the new Irene C. Hernandez School for the Advancement of the Sciences in Gage Park. “I think Walter Payton and others have contributed greatly to the Bears, and this is something that all of us respect and honor.”
