Yes, I'm happy about this choice. Tod Williams + Billie Tsien are some of the best American architects around. I'm glad that the Obama Foundation didn't make a token choice based on race. Slightly disappointed that John Ronan didn't get the nod, but I'm confident that Williams + Tsien will produce an amazing building full of nuance and beautiful both inside and out. Their Asia Society building in Hong Kong is
pure poetry.
The big takeaway for me here is that Williams + Tsien are great architects, but they're not urbanists per se. I would expect them to fully embrace a design that stands alone in the park versus something that engages with the surrounding neighborhood. As noted before, this also jives with the strict security requirements for the Library, but it's a missed opportunity for the South Side. Plus, without the architect pulling for a design that engages the city, I think the Foundation will lean towards the Jackson Park site because of its proximity to the lake and the Museum of Science/Industry.
I wonder if the Obama Foundation has already made their choice in favor of Jackson Park? It would certainly explain Rahm's newfound interest in the Gray Line proposal for Metra Electric... it checks a number of boxes politically, bringing rapid transit to the U of C, the Obama Library, the Pullman Monument, and numerous black communities on the South Side at a fraction of the cost of the Red Line extension (maybe the final nail in the coffin of that project). In practice, though, it's less useful as transit since it doesn't connect to the rest of the CTA or Metra systems.