The decision to build Barack Obama’s presidential library in Chicago’s lakefront Jackson Park rather than a nearby impoverished neighborhood has left some residents worried the museum will deliver less of a boost to the city’s South Side.
Some say Washington Park, a mile to the west, has greater needs because of poverty and population decline, and the location decision is a missed opportunity to spur development there.
In a statement last week, the Obama Foundation seemed to conclude that more visitors would be drawn to Jackson Park and that building the library there would have “the greatest long-term impact on the combined communities.”
The Obama Foundation will hold a ceremony Wednesday to unveil details of the president’s Jackson Park choice.
