[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 79 (Thursday, June 6, 2013)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E826]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 THE INTRODUCTION OF THE NATIONAL MALL REVITALIZATION AND DESIGNATION 
                                  ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON

                      of the district of columbia

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, June 6, 2013

  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, last week while Congress was out of session, 
we had the kickoff for the second season of ``Lunchtime Music on the 
Mall,'' which brings local and regional musicians to the National Mall 
to perform during the lunchtime hour, giving visitors and particularly 
our federal and other office workers downtown a break from the pace of 
business in Washington and an opportunity to enjoy their National Mall. 
The performances, featuring amateur city and regional residents, are 
sponsored by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority 
(WMATA), the D.C. Commission on the Arts and Humanities, and the 
National Park Service (NPS), in conjunction with my office. To preserve 
and enhance the National Mall, a priceless space, I am reintroducing 
the National Mall Revitalization and Designation Act. Until the Trust 
for the National Mall was established in 2007, the National Mall was 
Washington's most neglected and underutilized federal property, despite 
being well-known and treasured. The Trust for the National Mall is 
already making a noteworthy and important difference, and its plan will 
give the Mall the majesty it deserves. In the meantime, there is much 
that can be done, from defining the Mall's official identity for the 
first time to adding low-cost basic amenities. My bill authorizes the 
National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC) to expand the boundaries of 
the Mall where commemorative works may be located, requires NCPC to 
study the commemorative works process, and requires the Secretary of 
the Interior to submit a plan within 180 days of passage to Congress to 
enhance visitor enjoyment, amenities and cultural experiences on the 
Mall.
  I worked closely with NCPC and other agencies in drafting the bill. 
The bill would give NCPC the responsibility and necessary flexibility 
to designate Mall areas for commemorative works and, for the first 
time, to expand the official Mall area when appropriate to accommodate 
future commemorative works and cultural institutions.
  In addition, tourists and workers downtown should be able to walk to 
the Mall and hear music and other entertainment, from string quartets 
to solo singers during lunch at attractive tables where good--not 
fast--food is available. Residents of the city and region should be 
able to find space for fun and games on the Mall, beyond the space 
between Third Street and the Lincoln Memorial.
  Bordered by world-class cultural institutions, the Mall need not 
continue to be reduced to a mere lawn with a few--too few--old, 
ordinary benches and a couple of fast food stands until the expansive 
work the Trust for the National Mall is completed. The plan by the 
Secretary of the Interior required by the bill would ensure chairs and 
tables for people who bring lunch to the Mall and the presence of 
cultural amenities. The NPS has my thanks for implementing and indeed 
sponsoring the part of the bill that calls for cultural amenities with 
Lunchtime Music on the Mall, which began last week.
  Lunchtime Music on the Mall is a good start to bringing the Mall 
alive during the workday. With the necessary imagination, making the 
Mall an inviting place with cultural and other amenities is achievable 
now.
  The NCPC is well on its way to meeting the bill's requirement for an 
expansive, 21st-century definition of the Mall, particularly now that 
the Trust for the National Mall is doing such important work. 
Frustrated by continually fighting off proposals for new monuments, 
museums, and memorials on the already-crowded Mall space, I asked the 
NCPC to devise a Mall presentation plan. In 2003, Congress amended the 
Commemorative Works Act to create a reserve area--a no-build zone where 
new memorials may not be built. This action was helpful in quelling 
some but by no means all of the demand from groups for placement of 
commemorative works on what they view as the Mall.
  However, recognizing the need for more commemorative work sites, NCPC 
and the Commission on Fine Arts (CFA) released a National Capital 
Framework Plan in 2009, which identifies sites near the Mall that are 
suitable for new commemorative works, including East Potomac Park, the 
Kennedy Center Plaza, and the new South Capitol gateway. Five new 
prestigious memorials are scheduled for such sites, including the 
Eisenhower Memorial and the U.S. Air Force Memorial. I appreciate that 
NCPC and the CFA work closely with the District of Columbia in 
designating off-Mall sites for new commemorative works. The District 
welcomes the expanded Mall into our local neighborhoods to increase the 
number of tourists who visit them, enhancing the work of the District 
of Columbia government and local organizations such as Cultural Tourism 
that offer tours of historic District neighborhoods. The off-Mall sites 
for commemorative works also complement development of entirely new 
neighborhoods near the Mall, particularly with the passage of my bills 
that are redeveloping both the Southwest and Southeast Waterfront.
  I urge my colleagues to support this important legislation.

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