The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has ended a lease at the Obama Presidential Library site located at Hoffman Estates in northwest Chicago.

This decision, however, is hardly expected to affect operations, as the library is set to close later this year and relocate to College Park, Maryland.

Managed by the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), the Hoffman Estates site houses approximately 25 million unclassified paper documents, which are in the process of being digitized for future access.

The termination is part of a broader federal effort to reduce wasteful spending. DOGE reported that the lease terminations across nearly 750 federal properties could save taxpayers $468 million. According to NARA, the closure of Hoffman Estates is scheduled for late Fiscal Year 2025, which concludes on September 30, 2025. The building has been rented by NARA since 2016, at an annual cost of $1.4 million.

Artifacts from the library, including gifts presented to the Obamas, are also being transferred to Maryland. The collection includes Barack Obama’s personal items like his silver BlackBerry, and Michelle Obama’s dresses.

Meanwhile, the Obama Presidential Center, a separate private initiative managed by the Obama Foundation, is under construction near Jackson Park on Chicago’s south side.

The center, which will feature a 235-foot museum tower, a public library branch, and other facilities, has faced delays and rising costs. Initially budgeted at $350 million, the projected cost escalated to $830 million by 2021, with the final amount still undetermined. The center is expected to open next year.

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