Draft Hermits Rest MOA

Grand Canyon National Parks seeks public comments on Hermits Rest Water Tank Memorandum of Agreement

Grand Canyon National Park, AZ — The National Park Service (NPS) is seeking public comments on a draft Memorandum of Agreement developed to resolve adverse effects associated with the replacement water tank at Hermits Rest. Public comments will be accepted for 15 days of the press release.

In 2021, the NPS completed consultation under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act for the replacement of the Hermits Rest water tank. The project was initially found to have no adverse effect because the new tank was intended to replace the existing tank in kind.

During the contracting phase, newer safety requirements of the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality required the addition of a ladder and platform to the replacement tank. The tank installed in 2022 also included a cap. These changes altered the tanks appearance and introduced visible modern features within the Hermits Rest National Historic Landmark. The NPS subsequently determined that the changes resulted in an adverse effect to the historic property.

The NPS developed the draft Memorandum of Agreement in consultation with the Arizona State Historic Preservation Officer to identify measures that will resolve the adverse effect. Because Hermits Rest is a National Historic Landmark, the consultation also considers the NPS responsibility under Section 110(f) of the National Historic Preservation Act to minimize harm to the landmark to the maximum extent possible.
The draft Memorandum of Agreement identifies measures the NPS will take to address the visual effects of the replacement tank and its safety features and to ensure that future work is carried out in accordance with the agreement.

All comments are public records and may be made publicly available at any time, including personal information such as addresses, phone numbers, email addresses or other details included in comment submissions.

Document Content:

20260812 draft Hermits Rest MOA.pdf   (14.3 MB, PDF file) Disclaimer: Links within the above document(s) were valid as of the date published. Note: Some of the files may be in PDF format and can be viewed using the Adobe Acrobat Reader software. You may download a free copy of from Adobe Systems.