February 18, 2005

Dear Coalition Friends:

Our PowerPoint presentation on The Future of The National Mall was extremely well received yesterday by the Chairman and Commissioners of the Commission of Fine Arts (CFA).

The Commissioners decided that they will hold a special day-long meeting focusing on the Mall. Chairman David Childs invited the Coalition not only to participate in that session, but also to work with CFA in setting the agenda. He stated that "this is an important moment" for the Mall.

Another piece of good news is that the Commission postponed taking any action on the National Park Service's design for concrete bollards across the east front of the Lincoln Memorial. Commissioners instead asked for an on-site meeting in March at which CFA, commissioners of the National Capital Planning Commission, and the Coalition and other interested citizen groups could study and discuss mock-ups of the proposed security walls and other elements. There was long and thoughtful discussion about the potential physical and symbolic effects of security on the Lincoln Memorial and on the vista toward the Washington Monument.

A fine President's Day gift to Presidents Washington and Lincoln.