Chicago has been selected as home for the much sought-after George Lucas museum, with the city narrowly pipping bids from both Los Angeles and San Francisco.

Lucas, the creator of the Star Wars and Indiana Jones movie franchises among others, looked initially to have chosen San Francisco for the home of what will now be known as the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art. However, a combination of complications in the San Francisco plans and an aggressive lobbying effort by Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel led to Lucas choosing the Illinois city as home to his legacy project.

Pending approval by the Chicago Plan Commission, Lucas' institution will be built on what are now parking lots between Soldier Field and McCormick Place, with a projected opening date of 2018. Architectural renderings will be presented to city officials in late September/early October, according to a statement from the museum.

“I am humbled to be joining such an extraordinary museum community and to be creating the museum in a city that has a long tradition of embracing the arts and architecture,” Lucas said in a statement. He added, “Choosing Chicago is the right decision for the museum, but a difficult decision for me personally because of my strong personal and professional roots in the Bay Area.”

The museum will house a collection that includes examples of the special effects pioneered by Lucas and memorabilia such as the original Darth Vader costume.

Lucas has said he plans to invest up to US$300m (€220m, £179m) in the project, with another US$400m (€294m, £238m) endowment coming when he dies.