The National Capital Planning Commission agreed Thursday to press forward with upgrades to National Mall infrastructure despite concerns about preserving the park’s feel.
The commission approved the first phase of a project to make the Mall’s signs more attractive and visitor-friendly. Existing signs would be replaced with a uniform network known as the Uniguide System, which is also used in Yellowstone National Park.
Steve Lorenzetti, planning director for the National Park Service, said the new system would reduce “sign creep” and improve the Mall’s look. But Judy Scott Feldman of the National Coalition to Save Our Mall argued that Uniguide was inappropriate.
“The Mall is not a national park,” she said. “Why do we treat it like one?”
Feldman wants a historic design, similar to signs in Central Park, that “tells visitors they are somewhere special.”
The initial stage involves “operational signs,” which include identification of monuments and rules and regulations. The commission will consider another group, featuring maps and directions, next month.
The commission also heard a report from the architects of a proposed visitor’s center for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, which would be built below ground between 23rd Street and Henry Bacon Drive. Critics fear the project will be a blight on the nearby Lincoln Memorial.
Tom Wong, the project’s co-designer, introduced several tweaks he said would reduce the visual effect. A revised design reduces the overall space occupied by the center by 10 percent, shortens the access ramp by 60 feet and slightly repositions the building.
Finally, the commission approved plans to expand the Potomac Park levee in order to meet federal flood protection requirements. The plan calls for a retractable 120-foot-long barrier across 17th Street.
