Obama Presidential Center's opening date set for Juneteenth on South Side
Chicago will get its first full look at the Obama Presidential Center during a full slate of grand-opening celebrations over Juneteenth weekend, officials announced Saturday.
A dedication ceremony will be held June 18 for former President Barack Obama’s namesake museum and campus in Jackson Park, which will open to the public on June 19 after a decade of planning, fundraising, delays and construction. Additional community celebrations will be held on campus June 20-21.
The 44th president, who launched his political career in Chicago and has a home in Kenwood, announced the opening date in a social media video.
"Here on the South Side of Chicago, hope is getting a permanent home. Starting on June 19, you can visit the Obama Presidential Center,” Obama said. “This is not a monument to the past; it is a living destination for people who refuse to accept the status quo. If you feel that way, this is your invitation to join us.”
The Obama Foundation made the announcement on the 61st anniversary of the civil rights marches from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama — the subject of the Obama speech that’s partly inscribed on the exterior of the building on Stony Island Avenue near Midway Plaisance.
Scheduled to open to the public on the federal holiday commemorating the end of slavery, the Obama Center includes a playground, green space, public art installations, a public forum and a Chicago Public Library branch. The campus connects to the Museum of Science and Industry as well as the Jackson Park lagoons.
Most of it will be free, except for museum tickets. They’ll go on sale in May with pricing “in line with other Chicago cultural institutions,” foundation officials said.
Opening celebrations will include live performances, family activities, food, art and storytelling across campus.
Obama announced plans in 2015 for the $800 million center and its 225-foot museum tower, which take up 19.3 acres of the National Register-listed Jackson Park. It was originally expected to open by 2021 before being held up by lawsuits and federal reviews.