Lucas abandons plan to build museum in Chicago after lawsuit

Emanuel’s office offered an alternative site for the museum, but it also was on the lakefront and the parks group said it would also try to block that location in the courts.

CHICAGO (AP) – “Star Wars” creator George Lucas announced Friday that he has abandoned plans to build his art museum in Chicago, blaming delays over a lawsuit from a parks group opposed to any development along the city’s prized lakefront.

“No one benefits from continuing their seemingly unending litigation to protect a parking lot”.

The filmmaker said in a statement he will build his museum somewhere in California.

The decision to abandon plans for the museum comes after months of heated rhetoric from city officials and leadership of the parks group. Maybe LA can scoop up this museum on the rebound like it did with Boston’s thwarted Olympics bid. In Chicago, plans for his Lucas Museum of Narrative Art included not only a radically swooping structure designed by Ma Yansong, but also a program to rehabilitate the lakefront property and create community outreach programs.

The statement said the museum’s leaders confirmed it would now be located in California but did not specify in which city.

“Chicago’s loss will be another city’s gain”, Rahm said in a statement.

The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art will explore the intersection of storytelling and visual arts through exhibitions and displays that are expected to include items from the director’s personal collection. Although Friends of the Parks hinted at a compromise, it did not withdraw its lawsuit, the Chicago Tribune reported.

Chicago’s government has been enthusiastic in its support for the Lucas Museum, which is meant to showcase George Lucas’ collection of art related to storytelling, particularly with regard to cinema.

“Despite our best efforts to negotiate a common solution that would keep this tremendous cultural and economic asset in Chicago, Friends of the Parks chose to instead negotiate with themselves while Lucas negotiated with cities on the West Coast”, the mayor added. Lucas initially wanted to build the museum in San Francisco, where it was blocked by legal issues similar to the ones it faced in Chicago.