The National Park Service held a public symposium at the Navy Memorial Wednesday to hear complaints about the National Mall's facilities, ranging from restrooms to handicap access.
The symposium is part of an NPS planning initiative for improvements and preservation to the National Mall launched after Congress declared the Mall a "substantially completed work of civic art" in 2003. The declaration was part of several amendments to the Commemorative Works Act, which prohibit additional memorials on the Mall after the completion of the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial and the National Museum of African American History and Culture.
The planning initiative should be completed in December 2007 after NPS presents a draft of findings for additional public comment sometime after May, said Vikki Keys, superintendent of the National Mall and Memorial Parks.
"This is America's front yard," Keys said. "It represents us on the world stage."
Susan Spain, an NPS planner, said the National Mall is a unique preservation site. While the mall contains delicate plant life and grassy areas, it is required to be open to the public for demonstrations, she said. Spain cited numerous court decisions that called the Mall a designated area for government protests and said this requirement overrides concerns for natural resources.
"Our values and our courts have shifted the balance here for use in this area," Spain said.
She said hundreds have already submitted their public comment online. Possible improvements that NPS presented were increased restroom and service capacity.
"The facilities weren't designed for current levels of use," Spain said. "They need to be up to the standard."
Spain said gravel walkways were a major concern because of the damage they cause to wheelchairs and their irritating dust. Other suggestions included building restroom facilities around the Smithsonian museums and widening the sidewalk around the tidal basin.
D.C. resident Yasmin Abdul said she is not sure the government will resist the urge to fill in the Mall. She said although she doesn't visit the area often, she does have strong feelings about the space.
The symposium is part of an NPS planning initiative for improvements and preservation to the National Mall launched after Congress declared the Mall a "substantially completed work of civic art" in 2003. The declaration was part of several amendments to the Commemorative Works Act, which prohibit additional memorials on the Mall after the completion of the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial and the National Museum of African American History and Culture.
The planning initiative should be completed in December 2007 after NPS presents a draft of findings for additional public comment sometime after May, said Vikki Keys, superintendent of the National Mall and Memorial Parks.
"This is America's front yard," Keys said. "It represents us on the world stage."
Susan Spain, an NPS planner, said the National Mall is a unique preservation site. While the mall contains delicate plant life and grassy areas, it is required to be open to the public for demonstrations, she said. Spain cited numerous court decisions that called the Mall a designated area for government protests and said this requirement overrides concerns for natural resources.
"Our values and our courts have shifted the balance here for use in this area," Spain said.
She said hundreds have already submitted their public comment online. Possible improvements that NPS presented were increased restroom and service capacity.
"The facilities weren't designed for current levels of use," Spain said. "They need to be up to the standard."
Spain said gravel walkways were a major concern because of the damage they cause to wheelchairs and their irritating dust. Other suggestions included building restroom facilities around the Smithsonian museums and widening the sidewalk around the tidal basin.
D.C. resident Yasmin Abdul said she is not sure the government will resist the urge to fill in the Mall. She said although she doesn't visit the area often, she does have strong feelings about the space.
