CLOSE AD ×

George Lucas Museum will be in Chicago

George Lucas Museum will be in Chicago

Columnist Michael Sneed of the Chicago Sun-Times quotes “reliable sources” who tell her George Lucas has picked Chicago for his planned museum devoted to movie memorabilia, visual arts, and culture.

Mayor Rahm Emanuel in April charged a task force with finding a site for the museum, once San Francisco’s Presidio was ruled off-limits for the California-based Luasfilm magnate’s “museum dedicated to the power of the visual image.” San Francisco and Los Angeles are also vying for what Lucas has said will be an investment of at least $700 million—an infusion of economic activity that squares with Emanuel’s other efforts to develop Chicago’s cultural tourism industry.

Lucas had wanted to house his extensive art collection near San Francisco’s Crissy Field, but The Presidio Trust rejected his proposal along with two others for development on the Golden Gate Bridge-adjacent site. Chicago’s proposal identified a parking lot in downtown’s Museum Campus—land that Emanuel critics like Alderman Bob Fioretti said the Mayor was trying to hand off to private interests without ample negotiation or public input.

That debate may now get a lot more real for power brokers in Chicago, as City Hall officials have reportedly confirmed that Lucas will land his museum on Lake Michigan. The proposal still needs to go through the Chicago Plan Commission, but could open as soon as 2018.


CLOSE AD ×