Editorial Raises Concern About Access to Planned Golf Course Near Obama Library

The Editorial Board of the Chicago Tribune expresses concerns about a golf course proposed for Jackson Park on the South Side of Chicago, near the proposed Barack Obama Obama Presidential Center. The Editorial Board sees reasons to doubt that the golf course will be accessible to South Side residents.

Mayor Rah Emanuel pitched the idea of the golf course last December, according to the editorial, but "[e]ight months later, proponents of the project — the Chicago Park District and a nonprofit group called the Chicago Parks Golf Alliance — have yet to explain what the greens fees will be for South Side golfers, for Chicagoans and for people who live outside the city."

"That’s troubling, because the Park District has set October as its deadline for wrapping up a framework plan for a revamped Jackson Park. That framework will include the new golf course along with the $500 million Barack Obama Presidential Center," according to the editorial. "It’s an important milestone for the overhaul of Jackson Park, one that we think the Park District is approaching too hastily — and without enough input from South Siders."

If fully realized, the new golf course could supplement the presidential center in "breathing life" into the South Side economy, according to the editorial. The editorial thus urges the city to "slow its swing" to ensure the plan is done right.