The Obama Presidential Center will break ground in the South Side of Chicago later this year, the former president announced on Wednesday.
“I’m proud to announce that the Obama Presidential Center (OPC) will officially break ground in 2021,” Obama tweeted. “Our hope is that the center will breathe new life into historic Jackson Park while delivering jobs, growth, and much more to the South Side. Let’s get to work.”
The Obama Foundation said in an update that the project is estimated to generate $3.1 billion in “economic impact for Cook County” and would provide opportunities for community members in the South Side of the Windy City.
I’m proud to announce that the Obama Presidential Center will officially break ground in 2021. Our hope is that the center will breathe new life into historic Jackson Park while delivering jobs, growth, and much more to the South Side.
Let’s get to work. pic.twitter.com/cOqoPmaLkf
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) February 3, 2021
Plans for the development include building a museum, a public forum building and plaza, a library, bike and pedestrian walkways, gardens, and recreation areas.
The project is expected to bring up to 700,000 visitors to the site each year and would generate economic growth for the community surrounding the forthcoming center, according to the Obama Foundation readout. Development for the park will span across a 19.3-acre section of the 540-acre Jackson Park, more than 90% of which will remain publicly accessible green space.
The library has been met with controversy due to Jackson Park’s inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places. The foundation acknowledged the difficulty of getting the presidential center blueprint approved, noting that the groundbreaking marks “the conclusion of a robust four-year-long federal review process.”
The federal review of the project was initiated in 2017 to research the development’s effects on historic properties and the park environment. Officials said on Wednesday that a National Environmental Policy Act review had concluded, paving the way for the project to commence construction this year.
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot released a statement approving the center, saying it would “serve as an economic and cultural nucleus for our city’s historic South Side.”
Some groups still oppose the project, such as the nonprofit organization Protect Our Parks, which sued the city of Chicago in 2018, alleging officials could not authorize to transfer public parkland to a private nongovernmental entity such as the Obama Foundation. The group’s president, Herb Caplan, continues to disapprove of the project, saying in a statement that “all the findings in the Federal Review are specious” and that he is in the process of petitioning his lawsuit for consideration by the U.S. Supreme Court.
”The Defendants have repeated falsely stated that they will be breaking ground on a OPC in historic Jackson Park to create the impression that construction is a done deal — when it is far from a conclusion much less a ‘done deal’ in any way (except) in their imagination,” Caplan said.
Obama Foundation Chief Engagement Officer Michael Strautmanis defended the city’s approval for the project’s construction, saying a “vast majority” of community members and officials agreed the vetting of the site’s development was extensive, adding, “We encourage everyone to accept this decision.”
The Washington Examiner contacted Protect Our Parks for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
