The Center
We’re building a campus for active citizenship in the heart of Chicago’s South Side — but it will have projects all across the city, country, and world. The Center is a work in progress, built in direct partnership with thousands of people who have offered their feedback in-person and online. The Obama Presidential Center will be a living, working campus — an ongoing project where we will shape, together, what it means to be a good citizen in the 21st century.
The Obama Presidential Center will be a new landmark for the South Side and an economic engine for the city of Chicago — drawing hundreds of thousands of visitors every year, creating thousands of new jobs on the South Side — and help to continue the revitalization of historic Jackson Park. The campus will remove barriers and seamlessly connect the park to the lakefront, and will be unified with other local South Side institutions. It will be a place for all seasons, with winding landscapes, a sledding hill, and quiet spaces to read or reflect. The majority of the space will be free and open to the public.
The Forum Building
The Forum is two-story public meeting space, with one story above grade and one below ground, where people of all backgrounds can come together for programming. Visitors might take in a performance in the auditorium, create something in the broadcast studio, visit the public winter garden, or even grab a bite to eat in the restaurant. Like much of the Campus, the majority of this space will be free and open to the public.
The Museum Building
The Museum building is a tower — representing ascension, hope, and what ordinary people have the power to do together. Its design was inspired by a photo of four hands coming together. Like these hands, each facade of the four-sided tower will be a little different from the next — enhanced with texture and detail, and offering a beautiful and unique experience from all angles.
The Museum will serve as a landmark for the Campus, welcoming visitors to the Center, Jackson Park, and the South Side — but will have a relatively small footprint within the Campus. Its lower floors will house exhibitions that tell the Obamas’ story, as situated within the context of history: civil rights history, African-American history, the history of Chicago, and United States history. The rest of the building will be filled with other public spaces, including the top floor which will feature a reflective observation space that will be free and open to the public, with spectacular views of Lake Michigan and Jackson Park.
The Library Building
The Library Building is the third main building of the campus — a portal for visitors to engage with the world beyond the Obama Presidential Center. More than a building housing documents from the past, we want this to be a place for visitors to play a real role in building our collective future. With that in mind, to tap into the existing learning network within the city, the Foundation is currently exploring the possibility of a partnership with the Chicago Public Library.
The Plaza
The Museum, Forum, and Library Buildings will wrap around a community-facing public plaza that will act as another gateway into the park. We’re envisioning the plaza as a sort of town square for the local community — a place for informal and planned gatherings alike. It will host performances of all types — from celebrations honoring local figures to markets and fairs. There will be play areas, an indoor athletic facility, walking paths, and even a sledding hill. It will be a space for all seasons — for folks from all walks of life.
The Athletic Center
The Athletic Center will invite the community to take part in physical activity year round, highlighting the importance of teamwork and exercise through sports. It will provide opportunities for programming partnerships with local institutions, including Hyde Park Academy, the South Side YMCA, and the Chicago Park District Field House.
