What to Know
- Project crews will work in three phases to minimize impacts to public access to the park.
- Work zones will be clearly marked with signage and fencing.
- Repairs to park’s historic fountains, improving storm water drainage and work to enhance the park’s lawns.
Lafayette Park, just north of the White House in northwest Washington, D.C., is partially closed as construction crews work on preventing the area from turning into a swamp.
The park is a landmark for protesters and tourists who want to see and be seen on the north front of the White House.
The National Park Service is replacing an outdated irrigation system at Lafayette Park that no longer functions, due to broken pipes and sprinkler heads, with a new water-saving irrigation system that includes intelligent sensors that adjust to evaporation rates and weather conditions, like rain or freezing temperatures.
Project work will also include repairing the park’s historic fountains, improving storm water drainage and work to enhance the park’s lawns.
The project began on May 1, 2017, and is expected to be completed by the end of the year. Project crews will work in three phases to minimize impacts to public access to the park. Only a third of the park will be closed at any given time, and work zones will be clearly marked with signage and fencing.
The project is just one of a number of energy efficiency and water conservation projects at national parks throughout the greater Washington region as part of the 23-year Energy Savings Performance Contract awarded in 2014 to Siemens Government Technologies.
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The contract allows the NPS to conserve energy and water with no upfront costs and to accrue cost savings into the future. The project is funded by savings generated through the new energy conservation measures.
