Rock Creek Park Nature Center Complex Development Plan/EA

Calling all visitors, neighbors and fans of Rock Creek Park! The National Park Service invites you to review and share feedback on a plan to improve the Rock Creek Park Nature Center complex in upper Northwest Washington, D.C. The Nature Center complex includes the nature center and planetarium, horse center, maintenance area, picnic areas 13 and 14, and a network of pedestrian pathways and trails.

Learn about the plan and offer feedback at our open house on Wednesday, April 3, 2019, from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Rock Creek Park Nature Center (5200 Glover Road NW, Washington, D.C., 20015). You can also submit comments online or by mail.

The proposed plan/Environmental Assessment (plan/EA) describes three alternatives for the Nature Center complex. The NPS preferred alternative includes the following improvements:

- Redesigning the Nature Center to improve accessibility, increase spaces for visitors and large groups, create a protected outdoor classroom space and address flooding issues.

- Improving the Horse Center by repairing riding surfaces within the indoor riding ring and outdoor turnouts, constructing two new horse turnouts and adding public viewing areas and educational exhibits.

- Improving pedestrian connections by constructing new paved paths and unpaved trails near the Nature Center.

- Repairing current paths and providing new directional signs.

- Repairing the picnic shelter and constructing restrooms at picnic area #13

- Upgrading the planetarium by increasing accessibility, improving the dome to allow for better resolution of planetarium projections and installing new seats, lighting and electrical and HVAC systems.

- Relocating the historic Miller Cabin from its current location in a floodplain near the east bank of Rock Creek, to picnic area #14.

- Rehabilitating maintenance buildings to improve functionality for park maintenance operations.

The NPS welcomes your feedback and suggestions as we move forward with this project!

Document Content:

Rock Creek Park Nature Center Complex Development Concept Plan and Environmental Assessment   (18.2 MB, PDF file) Rock Creek Park Nature Center Complex Development Concept Plan Section 106 Assessment of Effects Report   (11.0 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 Acrobat Reader from Adobe Systems.