Marty Nesbitt said Wednesday that the foundation believes Jackson Park’s location and history as the site of the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition will attract visitors on a “global level”.
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It’s been announced the Obama Presidential Center will be located in Jackson Park, in the heart of South Side, Chicago.
Both park locations, which were designed by noted landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted, were chosen as finalists past year over bids by Columbia University in New York City, the University of Hawaii and the University of IL at Chicago. He added: “We are proud that the center will help spur development in an urban area and we can’t wait to forge new ways to give back to the people of Chicago who have given us so much”.
The choice between Jackson and Washington parks for the planned presidential library was a tough one, but in the end, the former’s “iconic location” and historical significance made the difference, the top Obama Foundation official said Wednesday. Regarding the choice of Jackson Park over Washington Park, Nesbitt said it was a hard decision because the parks are so close together, but either way, it is a win for this entire area.
Last week, the Obama Foundation said building the museum in Jackson Park would have “the greatest long-term impact on the combined communities”.
“This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity”, said Emanuel, who dismissed the group as “friends of the parking lot” during the battle over the Lucas museum.
The Obama project – which will include a library for the president’s archives, a museum and the Obama Foundation’s offices – will require some bulldozing of open space during construction. Selection of the library’s location follows last month’s announcement that Tod Williams and Billie Tsien Architects, a NY firm, would design the library center, honoring the nation’s first African-American president.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel, who was sharply critical of the Friends of the Parks’ move to block the Lucas museum, said he was glad the group was not going to sue to try to stop the Obama library. The park was designed by noted landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted.
But for the city’s residents, there are key differences between the two historic parks, which are both near the University of Chicago.
The library is expected to be completed in 2021 at a cost of at least $500 million. “Furthermore, any design should upgrade the park’s facilities and preserve existing recreational uses by the public”.
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“We admire President Obama’s record as a champion of the environment”.
