We are thrilled that President Obama has decided to bring the Obama Presidential Center to Chicago.

While we agree to disagree with the Obama Foundation about siting the Obama Presidential Center in a park, we are pleased that the Obama Foundation has invited Friends of the Parks’ input on the model and the process regarding the OPC.

“Our board has not yet had the opportunity to review the design,” said Lauren Moltz, Friends of the Parks board president and Hyde Park resident. “Additionally, Friends of the Parks maintains that it is premature to weigh in on the content and design of the presidential center itself absent a comprehensive park planning process. We continue to call for a transparent process to bring forth the data and engage the community’s voice in order to make good decisions about all of the ideas that have been floated concerning Jackson Park ‘revitalization.’”

The public has not yet seen the results of the engineering study related to the proposed professional golf course. The local community has not been presented with a thorough analysis of the traffic issues related to the proposed closure of streets in the park. There are still many equity questions about the funding of repairs for other existing park amenities and the replacement of all recreational facilities that are threatened with displacement. And local residents have great concerns about ensuring that benefits accrue to the immediate community. 

“Friends of the Parks has encouraged the Obama Foundation to bring to bear leadership that ensures a thorough and transparent comprehensive planning process for this historic park,” said Juanita Irizarry, executive director of Friends of the Parks. “This is a rare opportunity to honor the spirit and design of Jackson Park’s landscape architect, Frederick Law Olmsted--who believed deeply in parks as democratic spaces--as well as the President’s and Mrs. Obama’s stated desire to establish the Obama Presidential Center as a promoter and convener of citizen participation and engagement.”

Friends of the Parks is a forty-one year old nonprofit parks advocacy group whose mission is to preserve, protect, improve and promote the use of parks and open space in Chicago for the enjoyment of all residents and visitors. We advance our programmatic, educational, and advocacy work with the support of our members, donors and volunteers, and through our governmental, community and environmental partnerships.

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Chicago, Illinois (June 24, 2016) – “It is unfortunate that the Lucas Museum has made the decision to leave Chicago rather than locate the museum on one of several alternative sites that is not on Chicago’s lakefront. That would have been the true win-win,” said Friends of the Parks Executive Director Juanita Irizarry and Board Chair Lauren Moltz.
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After a court appearance today before U.S. District Court Judge John Darrah to set a further discovery schedule, Friends of the Parks’ continues its fight to keep the proposed Lucas Museum of Narrative Art off the lakefront.

“We have already learned through discovery that the city only offered one potential site to the Lucas Museum,” said Juanita Irizarry, Friends of the Parks’ executive director. “It would be a shame if the city lost this opportunity because the mayor didn’t seriously make an effort to find a site that is not subject to 100- year old public trust doctrine making it illegal to build on the lakefront.”

Friends of the Parks supports the Lucas Museum coming to Chicago, but the organization continues to oppose its siting on lakefront open space. Long known for its advocacy to keep Chicago’s lakefront “open, clear, and free” per the call of Chicago urban planners and park visionaries of a century ago, the park advocacy group believes that the siting of the Lucas Museum in this lakefront location contradicts the public trust doctrine and its central principle that the general public is the beneficiary of this public lakefront parkland. 

Friends of the Parks maintains that although the proposed site is now used as a parking lot, its future reversion to parkland is possible. Once a building is in place, it is forever precluded from being public open space. The organization would rather see the City and the Chicago Park District work toward the vision cast by Skidmore, Owing & Merrill for a “Burnham Sanctuary”—19 acres of parkland that would encompass the site in question. 

As Friends of the Parks has recommended previously, the organization hopes that Mr. Lucas will reconsider and locate his museum just a ½ mile south on the west side of Lake Shore Drive on the former Michael Reese Hospital site. The Reese site would allow the Museum Campus to be expanded to the south and bring needed economic development benefits to the Bronzeville community.

“We stand on the shoulders of Chicago entrepreneur of a century ago--Aaron Montgomery Ward--who made the protection of our lakefront his labor of love. He spent many decades and a small fortune saving Grant Park from development, yet his efforts were not widely appreciated in his time,” said Juanita Irizarry, executive director of Friends of the Parks. 

Friends of the Parks is a 40 year old non-profit parks advocacy group whose mission is to preserve protect, improve, and promote the use of Chicago’s parks and open spaces. We advance our programmatic, educational, and advocacy work with the support of our members, donors and volunteers, and through our governmental, community, corporate, and environmental partnerships.

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After today's court appearance, all parties in the challenge to the Lucas Museum will proceed as directed by the Court. On December 3, 2015, Friends of the Parks will file its written response to the City’s and Chicago Park District’s motion to dismiss. After a further reply by the City and Park District, the judge is scheduled to issue his opinion in court on February 4, 2016. Meanwhile, pursuant to direction from the Court, the City and the Park District will not break ground on the project. 

"We believe that we have strong legal authority to stop this surrender of a valuable public resource to a private party,” said Juanita Irizarry, Executive Director, Friends of the Parks. “We think that the sale of the property to George Lucas' foundation - a lease that could run for 297 years - is a boon not to the public but to Mr. Lucas himself. And this sale is in conflict with the purpose for which the land is held in trust - the express purpose being to preserve the land for the public and future generations as a pristine natural resource."

“We appreciate the judge reiterating that the city cannot break ground on the museum while this litigation is in process,” said Lauren Moltz, Board Chair, Friends of the Parks.

Friends of the Parks is a forty year old nonprofit parks advocacy group whose mission is to preserve, protect, improve, and promote the use of Chicago’s parks and public open spaces. We advance our programmatic, educational, and advocacy work with the support of our members, donors and volunteers, and through our governmental, community and environmental partnerships.

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Chicago, Illinois (August 25, 2015): Ceremony in Memory of Chicago’s Founder Jean Baptiste Point DuSable and DuSable Park Site Tour

On September 2, 2015 – The DuSable Park Coalition will host a memorial ceremony at Pioneer Court, 401 North Michigan Avenue, from 11am - 12pm honoring Chicago's first non-native settler Jean Baptiste Point DuSable. There will be a wreath laying and public celebration of the 197th anniversary of DuSable’s death at the bust of DuSable. At noon, the group will depart and walk over to 401 North Lake Shore Drive for the DuSable Park site tour. 

A DuSable Park Coalition Committee has representatives from several local organizations including the DuSable Heritage Association, Streeterville Organization of Active Residents (SOAR), Friends of DuSable, Bronzeville Children’s Museum, Friends of the Parks, and the American Indian Center. The group has relaunched its efforts to galvanize support for and to encourage the Chicago Park District to move ahead with construction of DuSable Park.

DuSable Park, a 3.5-acre lot on the north side of the junction of the Chicago River and Lake Michigan, is a "ghost park" in the sense that it is hidden in plain sight. Unfortunately, the park has laid dormant despite the fact that the late Mayor Harold Washington dedicated DuSable Park over twentyseven years ago to honor the Haitian man who is the founding father of Chicago. DuSable Park has yet to make any significant progress on its construction while other parks such as Millennium Park, Maggie Daley Park, and the 606 have opened in the near three decades since the initial DuSable park dedication. The park that bears the name of Chicago’s founder remains undeveloped and unbudgeted. The continued lack of attention and commitment on the part of the Chicago Park District to this particular project is deeply unsettling.

See the link below to the petition calling for action at DuSable Park. http://chn.ge/1IdhQ4S

FOTP is disappointed that the OPL will be built in an existing park. We respectfully urge the OPL Foundation to take any and all necessary steps to ensure the impact on either park is minimal and that any construction fits with the vision of Frederick Law Olmsted's original design. In that respect, we urge the OPL Foundation to conduct a study by outside and independent experts to assess the possible adverse environmental impacts in the construction of the OPL on open land and on the original artistic design of the park. To that end, FOTP hopes to work with the Foundation, the City and the University to find ways to protect and add to parkland and public space and public access, to offset any adverse environmental impacts or loss of open space. 

Lauren Moltz, Acting Executive Director FOTP: ”We admire President Obama’s record as a champion of the environment. FOTP also has a deep commitment to the protection and preservation of the public’s use of and access to open space. Friends of the Parks looks forward to working with the Foundation, the City, the Chicago Park District and the University of Chicago to protect and promote parkland, public space and public access. We would like to ensure that any impact on historic Jackson/ Washington Park will be minimal and will fit within the vision of Frederick Law Olmsted ‘s design. FOTP encourages the Obama Foundation and architects to consult with an Olmsted expert and work with the Chicago Park District, environmental groups and the community to preserve the integrity of these parks. The design of the Obama Library should maximize the use of available vacant land and underground space, and be truly “park positive” by adding parkland to the surrounding community. Furthermore, any design should upgrade the park’s facilities and preserve existing recreational uses by the public.”

We are pleased that unlike the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art, the OPL will apparently not be built on any "public trust" land recovered from Lake Michigan. The construction of an enormous new facility on the very margin of Lake Michigan has been and remains unacceptable to FOTP.

Moving forward, FOTP urges the Foundation to work closely with the surrounding community to address community benefit agreements, public access to these parks as well as regular communication with all stakeholders.

Friends of the Parks looks forward to working with the Obama Foundation, the City, the Chicago Park District, the University of Chicago and the community on implementing the recommendations of the open space coalition and as a consulting party for any historic preservation assessments of Washington Park or Jackson Park.

Friends of the Parks is a forty year old nonprofit parks advocacy group whose mission is to preserve, protect, improve, and promote the use of Chicago’s parks and public open spaces. We advance our programmatic, educational, and advocacy work with the support of our members, donors and volunteers, and through our governmental, community and environmental partnerships.

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Chicago, Illinois (March 12, 2015) – U.S. District Judge John Darrah today denied the Chicago Park District’s and City of Chicago’s motions to dismiss a lawsuit filed by Friends of the Parks in federal court challenging the siting of the Lucas Museum on Chicago’s lakefront public parkland. Judge Darrah ruled today that Friends of the Parks "plausibly states a claim that the agreement violates the public trust doctrine."

“While we are very supportive of the Lucas Museum coming to Chicago, we oppose its siting on lakefront public open space. We believe the siting of the Lucas Museum in this lakefront location contradicts the public trust doctrine and its central principle that the general public is the beneficiary of this public lakefront parkland. The Lucas Museum is not a public use.” says Cassandra Francis, President of Friends of the Parks.

“Although the proposed site is now well-used and produces significant revenue as a Chicago Park District and Bears parking lot, its future reversion to parkland is possible. Once a building is in place, it is forever precluded from being public open space. We hope that Mr. Lucas will consider siting his museum just a ½ mile south on the west side of Lake Shore Drive on the former Michael Reese Hospital site. The Reese site would allow the Museum Campus to be expanded to the south and bring needed economic development benefits to the Bronzeville Community.” says Francis.

“We are very pleased that the District Court is allowing the case to proceed,” says Lauren Moltz, Chairman of the Board of Friends of the Parks. “We look forward to working collaboratively with our open space partners, the community, the Mayor’s Office and the Chicago Park District to identify the strengths of alternative sites that will secure broad community support and will entice Mr. Lucas to bring his museum to Chicago.”

Friends of the Parks is a forty year old nonprofit parks advocacy group whose mission is to preserve, protect, improve, and promote the use of Chicago’s parks and open spaces. We advance our programmatic, educational, and advocacy work with the support of our members, donors and volunteers, and (through) our governmental, community, and environmental partnerships. 

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