Close The Washington Monument DC Delegate Says To Park Service

WASHINGTON, DC — The District's representative to Congress sent a letter Wednesday to the head of the National Park Service, calling for the closure of all D.C.-area NPS visitor centers and indoor properties, including the Washington Monument.

"I remain concerned about the health of National Park Service (NPS) employees who have been staffing NPS properties, including in the District of Columbia, during the coronavirus pandemic," Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) said, in a letter to acting NPS Director Margaret Everson. "I understand that there have been at least four cases of COVID-19 and one hospitalization among NPS employees who work on the National Mall. I also understand that NPS has not closed indoor properties such as the Washington Monument and that visitors are not uniformly following mask and social-distancing guidelines while on federal property, including inside the Washington Monument’s elevator. These behaviors put NPS employees and the public at significant risk."

Holmes Norton had sent a letter to NPS in March expressing her concerns regarding the safety of the agency's employees.

In recent weeks, D.C. Department of Health has reported an uptick in the number of daily cases of COVID-19 among District residents.

"Considering that NPS employees have contracted the virus despite the current safety precautions, I encourage you to close the Washington Monument, visitor centers and any other indoor properties in the National Capital Region again until this wave of the virus has subsided," Norton said, in her letter. "I also ask that you reinstitute other Phase 1 safety protocols for NPS employees, including moving all non-emergency employees to teleworking or to weather and safety leave, so that NPS employees can protect themselves and their families from the coronavirus as needed."

On Nov. 5, National Mall and Memorial Parks of the NPS modified its operations to temporarily close personal visitor services, concessions operations, athletic fields, and other facilities on the mall. This included closing the retail and souvenir stores at several monuments and memorials, including at the Washington Monument.

Holmes Norton requested that Everson respond to her letter by Dec. 15.