The wait in the online queue to buy tickets for the new $850 million Obama Presidential Center and Library stretched as long as three hours Wednesday as excitement mounted ahead of the long-anticipated opening of the facility in Jackson Park.
The Obama Presidential Center is scheduled to officially open June 18 during an invitation-only event that is expected to include former President Barack Obama, other former U.S. presidents and dignitaries, according to a recent report on NBC’s “Today” show.
The centerpiece of the 29-acre campus is the 225-foot-tall museum tower, which will house museum exhibits and several attractions.
While the campus grounds and the Chicago Public Library branch will be free to the public, museum admission for Illinois residents is $26 for adults and $15 for children ages 3 to 11. Illinois residents also can receive free admission on Tuesdays. Non-residents will pay $30 for adults and $23 for children ages 3 to 11.
Excitement surrounding the opening continues to build as workers put the finishing touches on the site’s landscaping and gardens, including newly planted trees and other greenery. Demand for tickets has rekindled memories of the 2016 opening of the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C., where visitors also had to obtain timed-entry passes to enter the highly popular facility.
On Wednesday, May 6, visitors began snapping up tickets that will allow them to explore all four levels of the museum tower, the Skyroom and a full-size replica of the Oval Office.
Throughout the day, the Crusader monitored the Obama Foundation website to track how quickly tickets were being claimed for specific dates. Foundation officials anticipated the heaviest demand during the summer months of June, July and August.
Ticket sales opened at 9 a.m., and some of the first tickets to disappear were for the first week after the center opens to the public on June 19, the Juneteenth holiday.
Soon afterward, tickets for the Fourth of July weekend, beginning Friday, July 3, also sold out.
By noon, all June weekend tickets were gone. Thirty minutes later, the remaining weekday tickets for June also had sold out. However, visitors still were able to purchase tickets for select dates in July and August.
By 3 p.m., only 15 days in July still had tickets available. In August, only four days were sold out while all five weekends remained open for ticket purchases.
Museum admission will be timed, and visitors are encouraged to arrive within 10 minutes of their scheduled entry time, foundation officials said.
The Obama Presidential Center museum will operate from 1 p.m. to 8 p.m. Mondays and from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday.