Our critic’s review of the Obama Center

Good morning, Chicago. ✶

🔎 Below: After failing to receive a tax break from Illinois lawmakers — who a source says are “calling the Bears’ bluff” — the team says a decision between Arlington Heights and Hammond, Indiana, will come soon.

🗞️ Plus: A new transit law takes effect, our review and photo tour of the Obama Presidential Center, and more news you need to know.

📝 Keeping score: The White Sox fell to the Twins, 9-6.

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⏱️: An 8-minute read

TODAY’S WEATHER ☀️

Sunny with a high near 75.

TODAY’S TOP STORY 🔎

Wolf Lake Memorial Park is near a potential Chicago Bears stadium site in Hammond, Indiana.

Tyler Pasciak LaRiviere/Sun-Times file

What’s next for the Bears after stadium bill stalls

By Patrick Finley, Fran Spielman, Mitchell Armentrout and Matt Trunfio

Bad news, Bears: At 3:39 a.m. Monday, the Illinois Senate passed a bill that would have allowed municipalities with at least 70,000 residents to create their own financing authorities for a stadium — and eliminate the Bears’ property tax bills. It would have enticed the team to build their domed stadium in their home state. But the House adjourned for the summer without voting on the bill.

Remaining options: The Bears said afterward that they planned to decide between the Arlington Heights and Hammond, Indiana, sites in late spring or early summer. Any decision will come only after the team’s board of directors meets. A source close to the Bears says the General Assembly is “clearly calling the Bears’ bluff” and daring them to move to Indiana.

Pritzker’s piece: Monday afternoon, Gov. JB Pritzker acknowledged he could end up being the Illinois governor who loses the Bears to Indiana, but it would be a turnover he can live with if it means keeping a fair playing field for taxpayers.

More from Springfield:

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TRANSPORTATION 🚆

Trains arrive at the Washington and Wabash station in the Loop, Tuesday afternoon, July 26, 2022. | Pat Nabong/Sun-Times — Monday marked the transition of the Regional Transportation Authority to the Northern Illinois Transit Authority.

New transit law takes effect as CTA, Metra, Pace enter new era

By David Struett

New authority: Goodbye, RTA. Hello, NITA. The retirement of the Regional Transportation Authority began Monday as its board was granted new powers by the landmark Northern Illinois Transit Authority Act. The name change will be visible Sept. 1, when NITA board members are seated

Act I: The first act of the board was to buoy CTA, Metra and Pace with a quarter-percent sales tax increase. The RTA sales tax hike, set for Aug. 1, increases public transit funding by $200 million this year and more than $500 million next year. It applies to the six-county area around Chicago. The funds should save the agencies from potential cuts and enhance bus and rail service.

Changes on deck: More frequent CTA and Pace buses and more Metra trains.

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ARCHITECTURE AND DESIGN 📐

The 225-foot Museum Tower at the Obama Presidential Center is steps away from artist Martin Puryear’s sculpture Bending the Arc.

Obama Center and its maligned signature building are worthy of consideration

By Lee Bey

Towering change: Ever since the $850 million Obama Presidential Center began rising out of the historic grounds of Jackson Park, its 225-foot Museum Tower — the campus’ most visible structure — became a riddlesome, what-the-heck-is-this kind of a building. Up close, the tower is quite striking and sculptural — as much a monument as it is a building. And that’s in a good way.

Stepping inside: The center’s architects have created generously sized exhibition spaces dedicated to Barack Obama’s presidency and the times and history that shaped and led to it. There’s a full-size replica of Obama’s Oval Office on the fourth floor and a rich art collection. One of the center’s best moments can be experienced in the expansive Nelson Mandela Sky Room, with floor-to-ceiling windows that offer views of Chicago’s South Side.

Public portion: The center’s nonticketed public portions are a revelation, with comfortable lounge and cafe spaces in the tower, Forum and library. The Forum, a multifunction building featuring an auditorium, rooms and cafe space, is the tower’s next-door neighbor. The grounds are free, just like a normal park.

In summary: The Obama Center’s tower is far from being a mausoleum. Along with its companion buildings, the plaza and redesigned park space turned a pleasant but quiet corner of Jackson Park into one of the best urban spaces in the city, maybe second only to Millennium Park.

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TAKE A PHOTO TOUR 📸

Text from Obama’s 2015 speech in Selma, AL is a feature of the museum tower building on the Obama Presidential Center campus in Jackson Park on the South Side, Wednesday, May 26, 2026. | Candace Dane Chambers/Sun-Times.