Former President Barack Obama unveiled the plans for his presidential center during a visit to Chicago's South Side on Wednesday.
Obama said the center will be up to 225,000 square feet and will take four years to build, with the end goal of providing youth and community programs across three structures.
"What we want this to be is the world premiere institution for training young people and leadership to make a difference in their communities, in their countries, and in the world," Obama said.
Wednesday's Windy City visit was Obama's second in a week. He spoke on a panel with members of the University of Chicago last week, which marked his first public appearance since he left the White House in January.
Included in the plans for Obama's presidential center are a tower-like museum, walkways lined with trees, a public plaza, and classrooms. Additionally, Obama and his wife Michelle will donate $2 million that will go toward summer job efforts in Chicago.
Wednesday's event took place at Chicago's South Shore Cultural Center, the site of the Obamas' wedding reception in 1992.
According to The Wall Street Journal, a budget for the project has not yet been put together. The goal is to create 1,500 construction jobs during the four-year build and roughly 300 permanent positions when the center opens.
Obama said his presidential center was destined to reside in Chicago.
"The best things that have happened to me in my life, happened in this community," he said. "Although we had a formal bidding process to determine where the presidential library was going to be, the fact of the matter was it had to be right here on the South Side of Chicago."
Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.
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