Former President Barack Obama has confirmed that the long-awaited Obama Presidential Center in Chicago’s historic Jackson Park will open in June 2026.

Speaking during a conversation at the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, AR, on Monday, Dec. 1, Obama narrowed the opening to a specific month but did not give an exact date, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.

“We’re going to open in June so that y’all don’t have to bring your coats up,” he said, per the outlet, bringing some clarity to a project that has been over a decade in the making.

The Obama Presidential Center, first announced in 2015, was originally expected to open in 2021. Construction was delayed multiple times due to federal reviews and legal challenges, with groundbreaking only beginning in 2021.

According to the Chicago Sun-Times, the $800 million center, which is now on track to be the most expensive presidential center in U.S. history, spans 20 acres, and features a 225-foot museum tower, an auditorium, a branch of the Chicago Public Library, gardens, parkland, and an athletic facility. The campus is designed not only as a museum but as a public gathering space for events, education, and community engagement.

“We want to create a campus, a place where the public gathers for a range of things that puts them face-to-face with each other and gets them to meet and be in dialogue and conversation and exposed to new ideas with each other,” Obama said, according to the outlet.

The project has faced its share of controversy, as the Chicago Sun-Times notes. Some preservationists opposed building the center in Jackson Park, a site listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Lawsuits were filed to block construction, though they were ultimately dismissed, according to the outlet. Residents also expressed concerns that the development could drive up property taxes and rent, leading to potential displacement. In response, the Chicago City Council passed a housing ordinance aimed at minimizing these impacts earlier this year.

Beyond its physical footprint, the Obama Presidential Center is envisioned as a hub for leadership development and civic engagement, particularly for young adults. Per the Chicago Sun-Times, Obama explained that the center will provide resources for people in their mid-20s to mid-30s who are already driving positive change in their fields but may lack support networks.

“We’ll create a virtual classroom for civic education, because my bet is that all the issues, problems that we have right now will be solved if old folks get out of the way,” he said. “We’ll bring those good old-fashioned American values to the new sets of problems that any of us, even my age, you know, we’re not going to experience.”

To stay updated on the Obama Presidential Center opening, visit the Obama Foundation website.