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Rehabilitate Constitution Gardens
National Mall and Memorial Parks » Rehabilitate Constitution Gardens » Document List
The National Park Service (NPS), with its partner, the Trust for the National Mall, will be making available for public review and comment an Environmental Assessment (EA) for the Rehabilitation of Constitution Gardens. This EA evaluated alternatives to rehabilitate Constitution Gardens to improve the functionality, ecology, visitor services, and accessibility of the area.
Constitution Gardens is an approximately 40-acre wooded park that was designed in the 1970s as "the major site in Washington, DC, commemorating the American Bicentennial. The park is located between the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and 17th Street NW on the National Mall in Washington, DC. The park features a Lockkeeper's House and an artificial lake with a small island that is home to the memorial to the 56 Signers of the Declaration of lndependence. Rows of trees surround the gardens on all sides while lawns and informal groupings of trees create an informal pastoral setting. There is a terraced paved area at the eastern edge of the lake and curvilinear pathways serve as the gardens' circulation system.
The gardens, in their present condition, do not meet the original design intent or the vision of the 2010 National Mall Plan. Poor soil conditions and drainage occur throughout the gardens and affect vegetation. There are circulation challenges, the area is underused and lacks amenities such as food, restrooms and recreational opportunities.
The EA analyzed three action alternatives which provide a range of rehabilitation approaches. The EA also evaluated a no-action alternative, which would include no changes to the existing layout, function, or use of Constitution Gardens.
A public meeting to discuss the Constitution Gardens EA will be held on Monday, July 13, 2015 from 5 p.m. - 7 p.m. at the National Park Service National Capital Regional Office, 1100 Ohio Drive SW, Washington, DC 20024. Parking is available.
Constitution Gardens is an approximately 40-acre wooded park that was designed in the 1970s as "the major site in Washington, DC, commemorating the American Bicentennial. The park is located between the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and 17th Street NW on the National Mall in Washington, DC. The park features a Lockkeeper's House and an artificial lake with a small island that is home to the memorial to the 56 Signers of the Declaration of lndependence. Rows of trees surround the gardens on all sides while lawns and informal groupings of trees create an informal pastoral setting. There is a terraced paved area at the eastern edge of the lake and curvilinear pathways serve as the gardens' circulation system.
The gardens, in their present condition, do not meet the original design intent or the vision of the 2010 National Mall Plan. Poor soil conditions and drainage occur throughout the gardens and affect vegetation. There are circulation challenges, the area is underused and lacks amenities such as food, restrooms and recreational opportunities.
The EA analyzed three action alternatives which provide a range of rehabilitation approaches. The EA also evaluated a no-action alternative, which would include no changes to the existing layout, function, or use of Constitution Gardens.
A public meeting to discuss the Constitution Gardens EA will be held on Monday, July 13, 2015 from 5 p.m. - 7 p.m. at the National Park Service National Capital Regional Office, 1100 Ohio Drive SW, Washington, DC 20024. Parking is available.