If He Wins...?

From Olympic dreams to entrepreneurs' schemes—how Chicago might benefit if a certain senator from Illinois becomes president

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Already, Chicagoans are wondering which of Obama's local friends and advisers would make the trek to Washington to be part of his administration or kitchen cabinet. "Oh, we're all speculating. . . . It makes for great dinner conversation," says Cheryle Jackson.

There's talk that Jarrett could become White House chief of staff. Through an Obama spokeswoman, Jarrett declined to comment. And John Rogers, who for years has played pickup basketball games with Obama, gets mentioned as someone who could head to Washington if he wanted to go. "John Rogers could have almost any spot he's willing to take," says Mikva. Rogers declined to comment.

Other locally based Obama supporters who might get appointments include Penny Pritzker, a wealthy and early Obama backer who is considered a favorite for a cabinet position or ambassadorship. Austan Goolsbee, a tax specialist from the University of Chicago, could play a significant economic advisory role. Eric Whitaker of the University of Chicago Medical Center might be asked to handle major public health issues or other initiatives. All declined to comment.

It's less likely that David Axelrod, the mastermind behind the Obama campaign, would officially join an Obama White House team. Obama sources say that after the election, Axelrod is expected to focus on his thriving Chicago-based political and business consultancy. Though his name has also come up as a potential appointee, William Daley, commerce secretary under Bill Clinton and now head of JPMorgan Chase's Midwest office, says he expects to stay put. "I've been to Washington," says Daley, a brother of the mayor.

As the nominee, Obama is also leader of the Democratic Party. In June, Obama started consolidating his hold over the Dems' political apparatus by integrating major campaign operations of the Democratic National Committee into his campaign headquarters on North Michigan Avenue. Even with a victory in November, however, the party operations will remain largely in Washington.

In terms of local politics, a presidential win by Obama would have an immediate impact: His U.S. Senate seat would become vacant, and under Illinois law Governor Rod Blagojevich holds the power to name someone to serve the remaining term. Again, Valerie Jarrett's name comes up. Among the other potential appointees being widely mentioned are U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky, Illinois treasurer Alexi Giannoulias (a friend of Obama), and Tammy Duckworth, director of the Illinois Department of Veterans' Affairs. There's even speculation Blagojevich could appoint himself.

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Meanwhile, the Hyde Park-Kenwood area, Obama's mixed neighborhood on the South Side, would almost certainly see more action and attention. "I believe they'll keep the house in [Kenwood] but probably won't go there in January and February," says Mikva of the Obama family.

Traffic snarls and other residential inconveniences would no doubt increase, at least when the family was in residence. What's more, quick-buck artists would likely move in, starting stores that hawk T-shirts, mugs, and other presidential novelty items. "It will open up a whole new market, that's for sure," says Valerie Duty Citrano, who owns Western White House Gifts near Crawford, Texas, the small town that is home to President Bush's ranch.

Both Crawford and the tiny town of Plains, Georgia, the home of the former president Jimmy Carter, saw property values increase significantly after the local guy got elected, but both also experienced a number of business busts. Citrano says that most of the stores that opened at the start of the Bush regime are long gone. "You can have too many," she says. Jay Hakes, director of the Carter Presidential Library in Atlanta, adds: "In some cases, Plains didn't live up to expectations. It was not some huge bonanza."

Hyde Park is up to the challenge, insists Bob Mason, executive director of the Southeast Chicago Commission, a community organization that works with Hyde Park-based businesses. "We're not Plains or Crawford," he says. "We're an urban neighborhood within a very large city. I'm confident we can stand it." He points out that the neighborhood has dealt well already with the demands of having Obama and his Secret Service force traveling through the streets.

Mason anticipates that the influx of the tourism trade, coupled with the everyday demands of a presidential entourage and the media, will boost business for existing restaurants and shops. One likely beneficiary would be Harper Court, a $6.5-million shopping center project being redeveloped jointly by the University of Chicago and the city.

Some exuberant Hyde Parkers are looking past an Obama presidency and wondering aloud where his presidential library might be located. (In February, President George W. Bush announced that his presidential library, estimated to cost up to $500 million, would be built on the campus of Southern Methodist University in Dallas.) Recently the Hyde Park Herald stirred speculation with a front-page contest asking readers to guess where the library would be built. Among the spots mentioned were two Hyde Park institutions: the University of Chicago, where Obama taught in the law school for years, and the Museum of Science and Industry. The museum campus north of Soldier Field along Lake Michigan also drew votes. "Well, that's getting four years, eight years ahead of yourself," says Lester Crown, whose family would probably be solicited for funds to support a presidential library.

Building a presidential library and museum is one significant way that President Obama could directly benefit his hometown. For example, Jay Hakes says, the Carter Presidential Library in Atlanta attracts more than 70,000 visitors annually from all over the globe.

For now, though, Rob Pierson, the trolley entrepreneur, and folks like him can only plan and await the election's outcome. Should Obama win, Pierson is prepared to make his move, just as he did for another Chicago superstar. "We now include tours to Harpo Studios," Pierson says. "There's an Oprah store there."

Photograph: AP/M. Spencer Green

This article appears in the October 2008 issue of Chicago Magazine.

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