Former President Barack Obama visited the massive construction site of the Obama Presidential Center in Jackson Park on Monday and thanked workers during a “topping-out” ceremony.
Construction on the Presidential Center and Museum is “about 56 percent” complete, according to workers on site, and President Obama briefly spoke and shook hands with dozens of people to celebrate the museum building's latest milestone of reaching a height of 225 feet.
“I just want you to know that I know you, and I hope that for decades to come, whenever people come here, they'll see some of the work that you've done,” Obama said. “You have young people, you have programs, you have learning and opportunities that they wouldn't have had otherwise. And it's not just because of me, it's because of you. And that's such a beautiful legacy.”
Former President Barack Obama (third from right) addresses workers at the construction site of the Obama Presidential Center in Jackson Park on Monday.
Tina Sfondeles/Chicago Sun-Times
The former president signed a column bearing messages from hundreds of workers that will support the Sky Room, the museum's top floor, which will house the library and archives. According to the Obama Foundation, the room will be “a place for reflection with spectacular views of Lake Michigan to the east, the skyscrapers of downtown Chicago to the north, and Chicago's South Side to the west and south.”
Former President Barack Obama's signature on a steel beam being installed at the construction site of the Obama Presidential Center in Hyde Park on Monday.
Jim Vondruska/The Sun-Times
“This is really a gift from the Obamas to Chicago and the people of Chicago, and I'm happy to be a part of it because we're going to be able to come here and discuss current events, not just politics but issues of life,” said Ernest Brown, leader of the Lakeside Alliance, a partner in building the center. “The life cycle of a project is usually about 80 years. This is probably [last] “It's 280 years old. When you go inside, it's a really impressive facility.”
Former presidential adviser and Obama Foundation CEO Valerie Jarrett joined Obama at the event. Obama, Obama Foundation officials and major donors will then attend a private reception at the nearby Griffin Museum of Science and Industry, which was recently named for conservative megadonor and Citadel founder and CEO Ken Griffin. A banner near the museum reflected the recent name change.
The Obama Presidential Center construction site in Hyde Park, Monday, June 10, 2024.
Jim Vondruska/The Sun-Times
Earlier Monday, Obama met with area young people to discuss programming they would like to see implemented at the Obama Center and across campus.
The former president, who said he wanted to be an architect as a child, has been actively involved in the center's design, and the decorative granite he selected from a New Hampshire quarry has begun to take shape in the museum building and the adjacent Forum and Library buildings, which use a more muted shade of the same granite type.
The complex, which spans a 19.3-acre campus along Stony Island Avenue from 59th to 62nd Streets, has been taking shape in Jackson Park since August 2021. The campus will include park space and four buildings, including an athletic and conference center, a museum tower, a Chicago Public Library branch, and the Forum, which features an auditorium, recording studio, assembly hall and an indoor winter garden. It is scheduled to open in 2026.
Former President Barack Obama visited the construction site of the Obama Presidential Center in Hyde Park on Monday and posed for a group photo with workers.
Jim Vondruska/The Sun-Times
