REAL PROPERTY MASTER PLAN ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY U.S. SOLDIERS’ AND AIRMEN’S HOME NATIONAL CEMETERY
2013 2014 REPRINT
PREPARED BY: HNTB - ENGINEERS ARCHITECTS PLANNERS PWP LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTS
UNDER CONTRACT TO: U.S. ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS NORFOLK DISTRICT
TABLE OF CONTENTS
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY—RPMP DIGEST ES-1 Introduction ················································ 1 ES-2 Existing Conditions ······································· 2 ES-3 Planning Options Considered ·························· 2 ES-4 Future Development Plan ······························· 3
1. INTRODUCTION 1.1 Overview ······················································ 7 1.2 RPMP Organization ········································ 8 1.3 Focus Areas ··················································· 8 1.4 Scope and Planning Horizon ······························ 9 1.5 ANC Mission ··············································· 10 1.6 RPMP Goals ················································ 11 1.7 RPMP Preparation ········································ 12
2. EXISTING CONDITIONS ASSESSMENT 2.1 Overview ···················································· 14 2.2 Geographic Location and Context ····················· 15 2.3 ANC Milestones ············································ 17 2.4 Land Use ···················································· 21 2.5 Circulation ·················································· 24 2.6 Topography ················································· 31 2.7 Views and Exposure ······································· 34 2.8 Vegetative Cover ··········································· 36 2.9 Utility Services ············································· 39 2.10 Regional Planning Considerations ··················· 44
3. PLANNING OPTIONS CONSIDERED 3.1 Overview ··················································· 60 3.2 Functional Elements ····································· 60 3.3 Cemetery Operations, Grounds Maintenance and Interment Spoils ·········································· 61 3.4 Accommodations for Families and Veterans ········ 66 3.5 Staff Accommodations ··································· 71 3.6 Visitor Experience ········································ 74 3.7 New Interment Area Development ···················· 79
4. FUTURE DEVELOPMENT PLAN 4.1 Overview ··················································· 84 4.2 Major Initiatives ·········································· 85 4.3 Future Development Action Plan ······················ 90
APPENDIX A - U.S. SOLDIERS’ AND AIRMEN’S HOME NATIONAL CEMETERY 1. Scope and Mission ·········································· 96 2. Existing Conditions ········································ 97 3. Historical Perspective and Milestones ·················· 99 4. Circulation ··················································· 99 5. Topography ················································ 101 6. Views and Exposure ······································ 101 7. Vegetative Cover ·········································· 103 8. Recommendations ········································ 103
LIST OF FIGURES Figure ES.1: Major Activity Zones ······································ 3
Figure 2.1: Location Map ················································· 15 Figure 2.2: Southern Expansion Site Parcels ························· 16 Figure 2.3: Arlington County Columbia Pike Plan ·················· 28 Figure 2.4: Southern Expansion Site Topography ·················· 32 Figure 2.5: Southern Expansion Site Slope Analysis ················ 33
Figure 3.1: Options for Grounds Maintenance Yard and Spoils Area Location ·············································· 62 Figure 3.2: Family Services Functions and Interment Areas ························································· 68 Figure 3.3: Funeral Procession Queuing Concept ················· 70 Figure 3.4: Administration/HQ Building Location Options ······················································ 72 Figure 3.5: Transportation Center Concept ························ 76 Figure 3.6: Interpretive Center Location Options ················· 78 Figure 3.7: Southern Expansion Site Baseline Scenario ·········· 81 Figure 3.8: Southern Expansion Site Partial Development Scenario ····················································· 82 Figure 3.9: Southern Expansion Site Full Development Scenario ····················································· 82
Figure 4.1: Committal Service Procession Queuing Concept ··· 86 Figure 4.2: Transportation Center Concept ························ 87 Figure 4.3: Concept Plan for Northern Expansion Site ·········· 88 Figure 4.4: Southern Expansion Site Baseline Scenario ·········· 89 Figure 4.5: Southern Expansion Site Partial Development Scenario ····················································· 89 Figure 4.6: Southern Expansion Site Full Development Scenario ····················································· 90
Figure A-1: SAHNC Cemetery Location ····························· 97 Figure A-2: Design for Superintendent’s Lodges ··················· 98 Figure A-3: Major Activity Zones ··································· 100 Figure A-4: Topography ··············································· 102 Figure A-5: Vegetative Cover ········································· 104 Figure A-6: Major Master Plan Initiatives ························· 106
LIST OF PLATES Plate 1.1: Major Activity Zones ··································· 13
Plate 2.1: Major Activity Zones ··································· 48 Plate 2.2: Circulation ··············································· 49 Plate 2.3: Primary Committal Service Procession Routes and Destinations ········································· 50 Plate 2.4: General Visitors’ Routes and Destinations ·············································· 51 Plate 2.5: Topography ·············································· 52 Plate 2.6: Major View Sheds ······································ 53 Plate 2.7: Vegetative Cover ········································ 54 Plate 2.8: Water Utility Service ··································· 55 Plate 2.9: Wastewater Utility Service ···························· 56 Plate 2.10 Stormwater Utility Service ···························· 57 Plate 2.11 Electric Utility Service ································· 58 Plate 2.12 Natural Gas Utility Service ··························· 59
Plate 4.1: Interment Operations and Major Construction Projects ··················································· 94 Plate 4.2: Interment Operations and Major Construction Projects Timeline ········································ 95
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY - RPMP DIGEST
ES-1 INTRODUCTION The Real Property Master Plan (RPMP) for Arlington National Cemetery (ANC) and U.S. Soldiers’ and Airmen’s Home National Cemetery (SAHNC) is a synchronized, comprehensive document that outlines how the two cemeteries will complete future development, sustainment, and operations across all lines of effort for a 25 year period from 2013 through 2037.
A living document, the RPMP helps ANC and SAHNC strategically plan to meet critical mission requirements and extend the burial capacity of the cemeteries while respecting the unique heritage, identity, and purpose of these important national shrines. According to estimates prepared by the Center for Army Analysis (CAA), ANC will exhaust the remaining capacity for interments for eligible veterans by 2024 for niche spaces and 2025 for in-ground spaces.1 The RPMP contains a number of major initiatives to extend the burial capacity of ANC and SAHNC well beyond the 2037 planning horizon. View of the Tomb of the Unknowns, ANC developed seven overarching goals to guide the RPMP one of ANC’s many sacred places development process and assess the costs and benefits of options: honoring the service and sacrifice of 1. Cultivate Key Attributes - Preserve the serenity, beauty, iconic our Nation’s veterans. image, and tranquility in the existing cemetery and promote these qualities in new development areas; 2. Integrate Core Mission Requirements - Facilitate and support cemetery mission and operations; 3. Provide a Safe and Accessible Environment - Provide for a safe, secure and accessible environment for staff, family members and general visitors; 4. Enhance Experiences - Enhance the learning and visiting experience for family members and general visitors; 5. Minimize Logistical and Circulation Conflicts - Minimize conflicts between key users and organize traffic flows for pedestrians and vehicles to reduce conflicts; 6. Provide New Interment Capacity - Extend the active life of the cemetery by developing new interment areas that complement the cemetery’s image and majestic character; and 7. Use Resources Wisely - Employ sustainability initiatives and design approaches throughout all cemetery activities, achieving a net zero impact when possible.
1 Center for Army Analysis. (26 December 2012). ANC Burial Capacity.
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ES-2 EXISTING CONDITIONS ANC is a majestic and serene 624-acre cemetery surrounded by major roadways, Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall (JBM-HH), the Pentagon, developed areas of Arlington County, and lands under the jurisdiction of the National Park Service. SAHNC is one of the nation’s oldest military cemeteries and occupies approximately 16 acres of land adjacent to the Armed Forces Retirement Home in Northwest Washington, DC.
ANC was officially founded on the grounds of Arlington House, the Robert E. Lee Memorial, as a military cemetery in 1864 by Brigadier General Montgomery C. Meigs, Quartermaster General of the U.S. Army. Meigs had appropriated the grounds on 15 June 1864 for use as a military cemetery.2 SAHNC preceded ANC by three years and began as a military cemetery in July 1861.
As presently configured, the Southern Expansion site adds 37 more acres to the cemetery, for a total of 661 acres. This is the baseline assumption for the RPMP. The RPMP, however, examines using the existing roadway network and parcel configuration at the Southern ANC provides a serene setting for families visiting the graves of loved Expansion site, as well as planning options that include possible road ones. closures, realignments or reconfigurations being discussed with Arlington County.
Figure ES-1 presents an illustration of the major activity centers located across ANC, including the locations of the Millennium Project site and Southern Expansion site. SAHNC is only planning for interments within the existing cemetery boundaries as there is remaining capacity for interments well beyond the planning horizon of the RPMP.
Recommendations for ANC and SAHNC benefited from a comprehensive review of existing conditions and an assessment of deficiencies and requirements based on the following factors: geographic location and context, historical milestones, land use, circulation, topography, views and exposure, vegetative cover, utility services, and regional agency planning considerations. Similar to ANC, SAHNC’s landscape features a grassy ground plane punctuated by rows of neatly ordered ES-3 PLANNING OPTIONS CONSIDERED uniform headstones placed among large specimen trees. The RPMP used mission requirements, the seven master plan goals and an assessment of existing conditions to create and compare various courses of action (COAs). COAs were developed to meet the
2History of Arlington Cemetery, Arlington House. (n.d.). Retrieved from http:// www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/History/Facts/ArlingtonHouse.aspx
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present and future requirements of ANC to support the master plan goals across five primary functional elements: 1. Cemetery operations, including grounds maintenance, interment site preparation and interment spoils; 2. Accommodations for veterans, families, and Chaplains attending committal services; 3. Accommodations for ANC administration staff; 4. General visitor experience; and 5. New interment area development.
COAs that best met mission requirements and master plan goals in the most cost-effective manner formed the future development plan for ANC. Given its smaller size and simplicity, the development of COAs for SAHNC followed a more streamlined process.
ES-4 FUTURE DEVELOPMENT PLAN The RPMP presents a 25 year future development action plan for ANC and SAHNC. The future development action plan is composed of specific projects that have been phased in five year increments from 2013 through 2037. Action plan items include major initiatives for
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ANC that were developed for each of the five key functional areas used in the discussion of planning options and COAs. Action plan items also include smaller capital improvement and real property maintenance projects such as infrastructure improvements, safety projects, horticultural activities, and information technology projects at both ANC and SAHNC.
The RPMP major initiatives for ANC are: 1. Cemetery Operations, Grounds Maintenance and Interment Spoils - For the short-term (2013-2017), the cemetery grounds maintenance contractor area located at the Old Warehouse site will move to Section 58. The spoils area will remain in Section 61. A more permanent location for the cemetery grounds maintenance contractor area and spoils area will be addressed in the final planning and design for the Southern Expansion site. 2. Accommodations for Families and Veterans - Once administration staff not required for committal services have moved from the Administration Building to the Welcome Center basement, the Administration Building shall be repurposed to provide improved Views of the colonnade and seating capabilities to support families, veterans and Chaplains. inside the Memorial Amphitheater Improvements to the building shall include: relocation and (top) and eastern façade, balustrade remodeling of family waiting rooms, creation of meeting rooms and steps leading down to the Tomb of for Chaplains and families, creation of more appropriate space for the Unknowns (bottom) characterize ANC staff scheduling and conducting committal services, creation the classic and timeless nature of of a quiet meditation/contemplation room, and creation of architectural landmarks in ANC as it additional Chaplains’ offices and changing rooms. Existing has developed through history. roadways shall be signed to provide an improved traffic flow for committal procession vehicle queuing. A new committal procession queuing area shall be constructed east of Halsey Drive in the 5-10 year planning period. 3. Staff Accommodations - In the short– and interim-term, ANC will address the space shortfall for administration staff by renovating the basement of Welcome Center and relocating staff not required for committal services. The planning and design for the Southern Expansion site shall identify sites for the potential location of a possible new Administration/HQ building, should one become necessary in the long-term due to mission growth and change. 4. Visitor Experience - In the short-term, the focus will be on continued deployment of free-standing computerized information stations in key locations throughout the cemetery. In the interim- term, ANC will explore the feasibility for the construction of a new Transportation Center to accommodate the large numbers of organized tours and tour buses that frequent the cemetery on a daily basis. In the long-term, ANC will consider the construction of an Interpretive Center at the Southern Expansion site. The
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facility could be developed in cooperation with other proposed interpretive centers such as for the Pentagon Memorial and Freedman’s Village. Possible locations for the Interpretive Center will be addressed in the final planning and design for the Southern Expansion site. 5. New Interment Area Development - Development of the Millennium Project site and the Southern Expansion site for interment uses will extend the active life of ANC beyond the planning horizon for the RPMP. The Millennium Projectsite began construction in 2014 and has an estimated capacity of over 27,000 first interment spaces.3 The general target for first interment spaces at the Southern Expansion site is at least 60,000 spaces. The development plan for the Southern Expansion site will be the subject of future planning and design studies. The RPMP guidance is for the property to be developed in a manner that represents the best use of the land with consideration of mission requirements and environmental sustainability while promoting the serenity, beauty, iconic image, and tranquility found in the existing cemetery. It is expected that development of the property will occur in a phased manner in response to cemetery needs and pending the outcome of on-going discussions between ANC, Arlington County and the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) regarding potential realignments of roadways, abandonment of surplus road rights-of-way in the area and land parcel consolidation.
Future development plan projects for SAHNC include the long-term option to convert a surplus cemetery road to in-ground interment and inurnment space when needed and the renovation of the Superintendent’s Lodge for use as a potential residential quarters.
View of headstones in the Civil War section of SAHNC.
3 U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Norfolk District. (April 2013). 95% Design Docu- ments, Millennium Project.
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(Left) An example of the iconic ANC image featuring neatly ordered rows of marble headstones uniformly placed across rolling grass-covered hills that are punctuated by specimen trees and clusters of trees that frame distance views of landmarks such as Arlington House, the Robert E. Lee Memorial.
1. INTRODUCTION
1.1 OVERVIEW The Real Property Master Plan (RPMP) for Arlington National Cemetery (ANC) and U.S. Soldiers’ and Airmen’s Home National Cemetery (SAHNC) is a synchronized, comprehensive document that outlines how the two cemeteries will address future development, sustainment, and operations across all lines of effort. The RPMP enables the two cemeteries to better communicate and coordinate across internal directorates, partner organizations and other stakeholders.
This RPMP is based on guidance for Army installation master planning set forth in the following key documents: Army Regulation (AR) 210- The Tomb of the Unknowns and the Changing of the Guard is one of the 20, Real Property Master Planning for Army Installations (16 May many hallowed grounds at ANC and 2005); the Army Real Property Master Planning Technical Manual (4th is a primary destination for visitors to Edition, May 2011) and Uniform Facility Criteria (UFC) 2-100-01, ANC. Installation Master Planning (15 May 2012). Army guidance in these standards documents has been tailored to address the fact that ANC and SAHNC are cemeteries rather than typical military installations.
The RPMP identifies ANC’s and SAHNC’s current and future requirements and assesses potential courses of action for proposed major initiatives. The RPMP then presents a future development plan consisting of recommendations and phasing considerations in five year time increments for the next 25 year planning horizon.
In addition to the RPMP, ANC prepared a Cemetery Design Guide (CDG), a Capital Investment Strategy (CIS) and Environmental Assessments (EAs) as part of the suite of master plan component
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documents required under Army master planning guidance. The CDG presents general design guidelines and standards to implement projects contained within the RPMP. The CIS presents a detailed capital plan to implement major RPMP initiatives contained in the RPMP. The EAs (one each for ANC and SAHNC) quantify the natural environment baseline. These documents, along with the Installation Cultural Resources Management Plan (ICRMP), were used to develop recommendations in the RPMP that avoided adverse impact to cultural and natural resources in ANC and SAHNC.
1.2 RPMP ORGANIZATION The RPMP consists of four main parts that follow this introductory chapter. Three chapters, Chapters 2-4, contain specific discussions related to ANC. Chapter 2, Existing Conditions Assessment, involves a discussion of current conditions, constraints and planning implications for the RPMP. Chapter 3, Planning Options Considered, explores key functional requirements, deficiencies and alternatives to address identified deficiencies. It also offers an analysis of courses of action (COAs) considered as alternatives during the development of ANC provides a serene setting for families visiting the final resting place the RPMP. Chapter 4, Future Development Plan, provides courses of of loved ones. action adopted for the RPMP along with the planned phasing of major initiatives. Appendix A contains specific discussions related to SAHNC.
1.3 FOCUS AREAS A primary consideration of the RPMP is how best to extend the burial capacity of ANC and SAHNC in a manner that respects the unique heritage, identity, and mission of these important national shrines.
For ANC, the RPMP provides the framework that ensures ANC will The first military service member remain the nation’s premier shrine honoring men and women who interred in ANC was Pvt. William have served in the United States Armed Forces while also completing Henry Christman, who was interred on two major expansion projects that enhance ANC’s service to the 13 May 1864.1 This RPMP provides Nation. The two expansion projects are the Millennium Project site, a recommendations that could extend 27 acre area in the northwestern corner of ANC and the Southern ANC’s ability to conduct first Expansion site, an area that currently includes a collection of three interments into the cemetery’s third separate parcels of land totaling 37 acres located at the southern century of continuous operation as an active military cemetery. boundary of ANC. These two projects represent the largest expansion of interment capacity in ANC since the 1976 expansion of the cemetery to lands east of Eisenhower Drive formerly occupied by old Fort Myer. The Millennium Project site began construction in 2014.
1 History of Arlington Cemetery, Facts About Section 27. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/History/Facts/AncSec27.aspx
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The development of planning and programming recommendations for the Southern Expansion site was a major part of this RPMP.
For SAHNC, the RPMP provides recommendations to increase interment capacity while ensuring the cemetery continues to provide a place of dignity and honor to lay to rest those who have served our Nation and have lived at the Armed Forces Retirement Home.
1.4 SCOPE AND PLANNING HORIZON The RPMP for ANC addresses approximately 661 acres of land, including the cemetery's existing 70 interments sections and the Millennium Project site (624 acres), and the Southern Expansion site (three parcels of land that total approximately 37 acres).2 Plate 1.1 at the end of this chapter depicts these key development areas and other major activity zones in ANC as they exist today or are planned for the next 25 years.
On ANC’s request, the Center for Army Analysis (CAA) first created a model in 2011 to help ANC forecast the remaining capacity for Columbarium courts offer a quiet and initial committal services (first interments) at ANC. This model has peaceful setting for interment of also been used to plan future development including ratios needed for cremains in niches clustered around in-ground and above ground interments. The following planning courtyards. estimates inform the development of the RPMP for ANC: 1. The current burial capacity for first interments will be exhausted in 2016 for niche spaces and 2025 for in-ground spaces.3 2. Niche spaces are being expanded through the completion of Columbarium Court 9 which will provide 20,292 niches and extend the capacity for initial interments in niche spaces until 2024.4 3. The cemetery is being expanded to the north into the Millennium 5 The term “first interment” is used as Project site to provide over 27,000 first interment spaces. The a measurement to forecast remaining CAA estimates this project will extend the availability of niche capacity available to inter service spaces for first interments to 2037 and in-ground spaces for first members in the cemetery. By law, 6 interments to 2035. eligible veterans are only authorized one gravesite or columbarium niche 4. The cemetery is expanding onto land once known as the Navy space at ANC unless they hold a Annex site. Preliminary estimates by the CAA project this will valid reservation from before 01 June 1962. As a result, “first interments” are the first eligible 2 Center for Army Analysis. (26 December 2012). ANC Burial Capacity. service member or family member 3 Ibid. interred or placed in a gravesite or 4 Ibid. niche space. ANC then subsequently inters or places eligible dependents 5 U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Norfolk District. (April 2013). 95% Design Docu- or the service member adjacent to, or ments, Millennium Project. atop, the first interment. 6 Center for Army Analysis. (26 December 2012). ANC Burial Capacity.
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extend the active life of the cemetery for first interments to approximately 2056 depending on the ultimate development of properties in this area.7
The RPMP for SAHNC addresses approximately 16 acres of land adjacent to the Armed Forces Retirement Home in NW Washington, DC. There is space available to meet anticipated interment requirements through the 25 planning horizon of the RPMP. The RPMP includes recommendations to extend the active interment life of the cemetery consistent with stated goals for the RPMP.
While the Army is committed to extending ANC’s and SAHNC’s ability to inter our Nation’s military heroes, eventually both Members of the RPMP working group used block models of various interment cemeteries will exhaust available land for burials. However, ANC and options, such as columbarium courts SAHNC will remain hallowed grounds much like those managed and structures representing above- overseas by the American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC). ground casketed remains interment At present, that end state is considered well beyond the 25 year options to examine suitable planning horizon used in the preparation of a RPMP. development concepts for the Southern Expansion site. 1.5 ANC MISSION ANC is the Army’s premier National Cemetery. The mission of the cemetery is as follows: “On behalf of the American people, we lay to rest those who have served our Nation with dignity and honor, treating their families with respect and compassion, and connecting guests to the rich tapestry of the cemetery's living history, while maintaining these hallowed grounds and the iconic image of Arlington befitting the sacrifice of all those who rest here in quiet repose.”8
The development, operation, maintenance, and administration of ANC and SAHNC are governed by 10 USC Chapter 446, 24 USC Chapter 7, 38 USC Chapter 28, and 32 CFR Part 553 Army National Cemeteries. Under §553.13, the Department of Army is directed to observe the following standards: 1. As permanent national shrines provided by a grateful nation to the honored dead of the Armed Forces of the United States, the standards for construction, maintenance, and operation of Army national cemeteries will be commensurate with the high purpose to which they are dedicated. The ANC Welcome Center provides a central gathering space for the large 2. Structures and facilities provided for Army cemeteries will be number of general visitors who come permanent in nature and of a scope, dignity, and aesthetic design to ANC each year. suitable to the purpose for which they are intended.
7 Center for Army Analysis. (26 December 2012). ANC Burial Capacity. 8 United States Army. (12 January 2012). The Army National Cemeteries Program Campaign Plan Key Components, Structure and Highlights. p.2.
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3. Cemeteries will be beautified by landscaping and by means of special features based on the historical aspects, location, or other factors of major significance. 4. Accommodations and services provided to the next of kin of the honored dead and to the general public will be of high order.
Visitors to ANC have many important places to go to honor, remember and explore our nation’s history and pay tribute to those that have served our country. The President John F. Kennedy Gravesite is just one of many commonly visited memorials at the cemetery. The photo to the left shows the main plaza approaching the President John F. Kennedy Gravesite. The plaza offers views to the cemetery below and distant views to the Lincoln Memorial and key monuments and landmarks of Washington D.C.
1.6 RPMP GOALS ANC developed seven overarching goals to guide the RPMP development process and assess costs and benefits of options: 1. Cultivate Key Attributes - Preserve the serenity, beauty, iconic image, and tranquility in the existing cemetery and promote these qualities in new development areas; 2. Integrate Core Mission Requirements - Facilitate and support cemetery mission and operations; 3. Provide a Safe and Accessible Environment - Provide for a safe, secure and accessible environment for staff, family members and general visitors; 4. Enhance Experiences - Enhance the learning and visiting experience for family members and general visitors; 5. Minimize Logistical and Circulation Conflicts - Minimize conflicts between key users and organize traffic flows for pedestrians and vehicles to reduce conflicts; 6. Provide New Interment Capacity - Extend the active life of the cemetery by developing new interment areas that complement the cemetery’s image and majestic character; and
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7. Use Resources Wisely - Employ sustainability initiatives and design approaches throughout all cemetery activities achieving a net zero impact when possible.
1.7 RPMP PREPARATION Preparation of the RPMP involved the active participation of every Directorate at ANC. All key mission elements and perspectives were fully represented. The development of the RPMP also benefited from coordination with interested federal, state and local government agency representatives. These included the following: Air Force Memorial Foundation, Arlington County Government, Arlington Development of the RPMP was guided Historical Society, Armed Forces Retirement Home, Black Heritage by the efforts of an RPMP working Museum of Arlington, District Department of the Environment, group that included representatives District Historic Preservation Office (DC HPO), DC Preservation from every facet of cemetery League, District Department of Transportation (DDOT), Joint Base operations and the ANC organization. Myer-Henderson Hall (JBM-HH), National Capital Planning Members of the working group met Commission (NCPC), National Park Service (NPS), National Trust for frequently for project charrettes and at Historic Preservation, U.S. Commission on Fine Arts (CFA), Virginia key plan development points to guide Department of Conservation and Recreation (VDCR), Virginia the RPMP. Department of Environmental Quality (VDEQ), Virginia Department of Health, Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT), Washington Headquarters Service (WHS), and the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA).
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Joint Base Plate 1.1: 5 Memorial Chapel Myer-Henderson Hall Major Activity Zones
Joint Base LEGEND: Myer-Henderson Hall 9 Arrival Zone: 1. Parking Garage 2. Welcome Center 3. Administration Building Lands Under NPS Jurisdiction 4. Old Post Chapel 5. Memorial Chapel 17 Primary Interment Zones: 18 6. In-Ground First Interment Foxcroft Sections with Most Capacity Heights 16 7. Columbarium Court #9 8. Niche Wall 9. Northern Expansion Site 10. Southern Expansion Site 10 15 Cemetery Operations Zones: Lands Under 11. Current Spoils Area (Sect.61) NPS 12. Current Contractor Area Jurisdiction Air (Sect. 58) Force 6 Memorial 13. Service Complex 3 14. Future Development Area 2 Primary Visitor Destinations: I-395 14 15. Women in Military Service 1 for America Memorial 14 16. J.F. Kennedy Gravesites 13 11 12 17. Arlington House Complex 18. Tomb of the Unknowns and 6 Memorial Amphitheater
8 7
The Pentagon NORTH
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ANC features two principal interment options that form the iconic image of the cemetery as it is known today. The photo to the left illustrates the Columbarium niches grouped into courtyard configurations in the foreground with distant views to headstones that mark in-ground interments in the background.
2. EXISTING CONDITIONS ASSESSMENT
2.1 OVERVIEW This chapter discusses conditions and deficiencies at ANC that define opportunities and constraints for the RPMP. Appendix A presents a similar overview of factors present at SAHNC. Information is organized by the following topics: 1. geographic location and context; 2. historical milestones; 3. land use; 4. circulation; 5. topography; 6. views and exposure; 7. vegetative cover; 8. utility services; and 9. regional agency planning considerations.
Per Army planning regulations, notably AR 210-20, Real Property Master Planning for Army Installations (16 May 2005), the development of an RPMP is undertaken with the concurrent preparation of an Installation (in this case Cemetery) Design Guide (CDG), and Environmental Assessments (EAs), and an Integrated Cultural Resources Management Plan (ICRMP). The ICRMP documents natural and cultural resources of significance or concern and the EA presents an assessment of proposed RPMP initiatives on natural and cultural resources with the intent of avoiding or minimizing
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As shown in Figure 2.1 to the right, ANC is centrally located in the heart of the National Capital Region and is easily accessed from Washington, D.C., northern Virginia and Maryland.
Figure 2.1: Location Map
adverse impacts. Using this integrated and concurrent approach, the EA and ICRMP helped ANC avoid recommendations that would negatively impact natural or cultural resources.
ANC also prepared a detailed Cemetery Design Guide (CDG) as part of the RPMP process. The CDG offers more detailed information on design standards and guidelines for elements such as landscape, building architecture and site elements that influence the cemetery image, identity and visual character. The CDG presents a series of plan recommendations related to the design of physical improvements that serve as a companion to recommendations contained in the RPMP.
2.2 GEOGRAPHIC LOCATION AND CONTEXT ANC is located adjacent to George Washington Memorial Parkway and the Potomac River in the northeastern corner of Arlington County, Virginia. (See Figure 2.1) ANC is situated less than one mile west of Washington, D.C. at the western terminus of Memorial Avenue, directly across the Arlington Memorial Bridge from the Lincoln Memorial. ANC is ringed by regional highways including: Interstate 395, Virginia Highway 110 (the Jefferson Davis Highway), the George Washington Memorial Parkway, and Virginia Highway 27 (Washington Boulevard - 9/11 Heroes Memorial Highway). Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall (JBM-HH) borders the northern and western boundaries of ANC. The Pentagon is located to the southeast of ANC. The George Washington Memorial Parkway (GWMP)
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ANC Service Complex 27 VA Pentagon
Foxcroft Heights e a Pik umbi Col I-395 VDOT Yard
adjoins the northeastern edge of ANC. The main ceremonial entrance Figure 2.2: Southern Expansion Site to ANC is from the Arlington Memorial Bridge and GWMP via Source: Washington Headquarters Memorial Avenue. These properties that adjoin ANC are under the Service. jurisdiction of the National Park Service (NPS). Properties located within ANC that are under NPS jurisdiction include Arlington House, the Robert E. Lee Memorial, and associated grounds. The Marine Corps War Memorial, another property administered by NPS, is located immediately to the north of ANC.
Figure 2.2 depicts the location and acreage of the three parcels of land, known as the Southern Expansion site, which are in the process of being transferred to ANC for the expansion of the cemetery. Each parcel is separated from the existing cemetery by roadways. Site 9402 is the largest parcel and is the primary site suitable for development for interment uses given its size, configuration and proximity to the existing cemetery. Although the Figure 2.2 shows a total of 22.57 acres for Site 9402, an agreement to transfer a total of 3 acres to the Air Force Memorial has been executed. Accordingly, the available area for ANC use for Site 9402 is 19.57 acres. Site 9401, 14.09 acres, and Site 8027, 4.29 acres, are also available for ANC use. The RPMP examined their use as potential locations for cemetery support functions.
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The Southern Expansion site parcels are bounded on the south by Interstate 395, on the north by Southgate Road, on the west by the Foxcroft Heights neighborhood and Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) Maintenance Yard, and on the east by the ramps connecting Columbia Pike to VA Highway 27. Columbia Pike divides the parcels in the Southern Expansion site and traverses through the site in a general west to east manner. Joyce Street further subdivides the parcels at the eastern edge of the area. Joyce Street intersects Columbia Pike and Southgate Road and then progresses southward to Pentagon City. ANC and the Service Complex are located north of the site.
2.2.1 Geographic Context RPMP Implications ANC is a majestic and serene 624-acre cemetery surrounded by major roadways, JBM-HH, the Pentagon, developed areas of Arlington County, and lands under the jurisdiction of the National Park Service. The Southern Expansion site adds 37 more acres to the cemetery, for a total of 661 acres. This is the baseline assumption for the RPMP. However, the RPMP does examine both using the existing roadway network and parcel configuration at the Southern Expansion site, as Views of the colonnade and seating well as planning options with possible road closures, realignments or inside the Memorial Amphitheater reconfigurations being discussed with Arlington County. (top) and eastern façade, balustrade and steps leading down to the Tomb of the Unknowns (bottom) characterize 2.3 ANC MILESTONES the classic and timeless nature of architectural landmarks in the ANC was officially founded on the grounds of Arlington House, the cemetery as it has developed through Robert E. Lee Memorial, as a military cemetery in 1864 by Brigadier history. General Montgomery C. Meigs, Quartermaster General of the U.S. Army. Meigs had appropriated the grounds on 15 June 1864 for use as a military cemetery and his intention was to render the house uninhabitable should the Lee family ever attempt to return.1
In May of 1864, Union Soldier Private William Christman, a member of the 67th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, became the first service member interred at what was to become the military cemetery in an area now known as Section 27 of ANC.2 A stone and masonry burial vault, the Tomb of the Unknown Civil War Soldier, was among the first monuments to Union dead erected at ANC under Meigs' orders. The Tomb was erected in the rose garden of Arlington House. The Tomb contains the remains of some 2,111 individuals from Bull Run
1 History of Arlington Cemetery, Arlington House. (n.d.). Retrieved from http:// www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/History/Facts/ArlingtonHouse.aspx 2 History of Arlington Cemetery, Facts About Section 27. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/History/Facts/AncSec27.aspx
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Arlington House, the Robert E. Lee Memorial is visible from many parts of ANC. The house occupies high ground in the heart of the cemetery and is a landmark visible from many points as one approaches the cemetery. Arlington House is even visible from the west side of the Capitol building. Although the actual house and surrounding grounds are administered by the National Park Service, the structure’s history and iconic image are inexorably tied to the ANC. and the Route to the Rappahannock.3 The remains were found The principal structures of Arlington House were originally built on the scattered across the battlefields or in trenches and brought to ANC. 1,100 acre estate over a 16 year This monument was the first memorial at Arlington to be dedicated to 4 period from 1802 to 1818 by George soldiers who had died in battle, and who later could not be identified. Washington Parke Custis. George Washington Parke Custis and his Robert E. Lee and his wife, Mary Anna Custis Lee, daughter of the wife, Mary Lee Fitzhugh (whom he builder of Arlington House, George Washington Parke Custis, lived at had married in 1804), lived in Arlington House until 1861, when Virginia ratified an alliance with Arlington House for the rest of their the Confederacy and seceded from the Union. Between 1841 and lives and were buried together on the 1857, Lee was away from Arlington House for several extended property after their deaths in 1857 periods. Although under the terms of her father's will, Mary Anna and 1853, respectively. They are Custis Lee was given the right to inhabit and control the house for the buried in their original graves in 6 rest of her life, the property was confiscated by the federal Section 13. government when property taxes levied against Arlington estate were not paid in person by Mrs. Lee. The property at Arlington House was offered for public sale on 11 January 1864, and was purchased by a tax commissioner for "government use, for war, military, charitable and educational purposes."5
The federal government dedicated a model community for freed slaves, Freedman's Village, near the current Memorial Amphitheater,
3 History of Arlington Cemetery, Arlington House. (n.d.). Retrieved from http:// www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/History/Facts/ArlingtonHouse.aspx 4 Visitor Information, Exploring the Cemetery, Monuments and Memorials, Civil War Unknowns Monument. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/ VisitorInformation/MonumentMemorials/CivilWar.aspx 5History of Arlington Cemetery, Arlington House. (n.d.). Retrieved from http:// www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/History/Facts/ArlingtonHouse.aspx 6Ibid.
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on 04 December 1863. More than 1,100 freed slaves were given land by the government, where they farmed and lived during and after the Civil War.7
In December 1882, the U.S. Supreme Court, in a 5-4 decision, returned the property of Arlington House and the estate to Custis Lee, the eldest son of General and Mrs. Lee stating that it had been confiscated without due process. On 03 March 1883, Congress purchased the property from Lee for $150,000. It became a military reservation and Freedman's Village ceased to exist; however, the gravesites that were once part of the village remained on the grounds of the reservation.8
The Old Amphitheater was completed in 1873 to commemorate the Nation’s fifth Memorial Day Celebration.
The construction of the Memorial Amphitheater (right) and Tomb of the Unknowns (below) represent important milestones in the history of ANC.
View of Memorial Amphitheater steps and colonnade looking to the east from the western façade of the complex.
A permanent amphitheater was built at ANC in 1873 (the Old Amphitheater) to celebrate Memorial Day. As the number of visitors to ANC increased, the Old Amphitheater proved insufficient in size. Congress authorized the preparation of plans for a new amphitheater on a scale of grandeur appropriate for ANC. The new Memorial Amphitheater was dedicated on 15 May 1920 and was envisioned as a place to assemble and honor the American defenders. Congress authorized its construction 04 March 1913 and the ground-breaking ceremony occurred on 01 March 1915. President Woodrow Wilson placed its cornerstone 15 October 1915. While many ceremonies are conducted throughout the country, many consider the services at Arlington's Memorial Amphitheater to be the nation's official ceremonies to honor all American service members who serve to keep the United States free.9
7History of Arlington Cemetery, Arlington House. (n.d.). Retrieved from http:// www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/History/Facts/ArlingtonHouse.aspx 8Ibid. 9Visitor Information, Exploring the Cemetery, Memorial Amphitheater. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/VisitorInformation/ Amphitheater.aspx
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The Tomb of the Unknowns at ANC was first established on 04 March 1921 when Congress approved the burial of an unidentified American soldier from World War I in the plaza of the new Memorial Amphitheater. The Tomb structure was later placed above the grave of the Unknown Soldier of World War I. The crypts of unknowns from World War II, Korea and Vietnam were later established to the west of the tomb structure. However, the remains of the Vietnam Unknown were exhumed on 14 May 1998 and the remains were identified. It has been decided that the crypt that contained the remains of the Vietnam Unknown will remain vacant.10
There are two U.S. presidents buried at Arlington National Cemetery: The President John F. Kennedy William Howard Taft, who died in 1930, and President John F. Eternal Flame and Gravesite remains Kennedy, who was assassinated on 22 November 1963. The one of the most visited site at ANC. interment of President Kennedy at ANC became a turning point in the cemetery’s history, as visitors increased from approximately two million persons annually in 1962 to more than seven million during the twelve months following President Kennedy’s death. The burial plot of President John F. Kennedy and family remains the most visited site at ANC to this day.11
The last major expansion of ANC occurred as a result of prior master planning efforts, namely the 1967 Master Plan. The plan, as later modified in 1976, called for the expansion of ANC to the east of Eisenhower Drive onto the former 200-acre site of South Post, Fort Myer. The execution of the expansion plan resulted in the cemetery as it functions today. The plan included the construction of a new administration building, visitors center, parking garage, consolidation of maintenance and service facilities, and the development of new in- ground interment sections east of Eisenhower Drive, including the introduction of the Columbarium Complex, a series of courts designed for the inurnment of cremains.12
2.3.1 ANC Milestones RPMP Implications Today more than 3 million persons visit the cemetery annually to honor the Nation’s military heroes. Many large ceremonies and events occur throughout the calendar year. In addition, ANC remains
10Visitor Information, Exploring the Cemetery, The Tomb of the Unknowns, The Unknown of Vietnam. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/ VisitorInformation/TombofUnknowns.aspx 11Visitor Information, Exploring the Cemetery, Monuments and Memorials, Presi- dent John Fitzgerald Kennedy Gravesite. (n.d.). Retrieved from http:// www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/VisitorInformation/MonumentMemorials/JFK.aspx 12Arlington National Cemetery Master Plan. 1998. USACE Baltimore District and Rhodeside and Harwell Incorporated.
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a very active cemetery with an average of 27 to 30 interment services held each day, Monday-Friday, as well as services on Saturday for most of the calendar year.
At ANC’s request, the Center for Army Analysis (CAA) first created a model in 2011 to help forecast the remaining capacity for first interments at ANC. According to the model revised in December 2012, ANC will run out of cemetery capacity for first interments by the year 2024 for niche inurnments and 2025 for in-ground interments.13 These figures include the availability of niche spaces in the Columbarium Court #9 which was completed in Spring 2013. Expansion of the cemetery to the Millennium Project site and the Southern Expansion site is required to extend ANC’s ability to inter our Nation’s military heroes. These two new development actions are central to the RPMP and represent the cemetery’s next important milestones.
2.4 LAND USE ANC can be characterized as a large, serene cemetery environment that is punctuated by a number of major activity centers. These include: interment areas, well-frequented visitor attractions, administration staff functions, general cemetery operation functions, and new development areas. Plate 2.1 is a visual representation of the major activity centers and key facilities located across the cemetery.
2.4.1 Interment Activity The primary location of current and near-term first interment activity is concentrated east of Eisenhower Drive, south of Leahy Drive and north of York Road. The newly opened Columbarium Court #9 will also be a major focal point for first interment activity. Second interments occur across the cemetery.
Most veterans, families and friends attending committal services gather at the Administration Building in preparation for the committal service. After queuing their vehicles along a street adjacent to the Administration Building, they drive their vehicles to a location near the site of the committal service. Depending on the type and location of interment, the service will be held at the in-ground interment site, along the niche wall, or in a committal shelter at the Columbarium Courts.
13 Center for Army Analysis. (26 December 2012). ANC Burial Capacity.
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The existing Welcome Center is often overwhelmed by large numbers of daily visitors. In partnership with the U.S. Army Center for Military History, ANC completed a major renovation of the Welcome Center in January 2013 to provide a substantive overview of ANC’s rich history and traditions before visitors enter the cemetery. However, the Welcome Center lacks space for more robust exhibits, as would be expected at the nation’s premier 2.4.2 Visitor Activity military cemetery, to help tell fully the story of ANC. Well-frequented visitor attractions are concentrated along Memorial Avenue and west of Eisenhower Drive. These include the Welcome Center, Women in Military Service for America Memorial, a visitor parking garage located along Memorial Avenue, the President John F. Kennedy Gravesite, the Memorial Amphitheater, Tomb of the Unknowns, and Arlington House, the Robert E. Lee Memorial located west of Eisenhower Drive. Other significant monuments and memorials are located across the cemetery.
Visitors to ANC are welcome to explore the entire cemetery, although most visitors cluster at some of the distinct sites of historical importance. Most visitors come through the Memorial Avenue gates, arriving first to the visitor parking garage and/or the Welcome Center. While at ANC visitors access popular destinations such the President John F. Kennedy Gravesite, Arlington House, and the Tomb of the Unknowns and the Memorial Amphitheater, either on foot or via the National Park Service tour vehicle that originates and ends at the Welcome Center.
2.4.3 Administration and Cemetery Operations Administration staff are located in the Administration Building and Welcome Center located south of Memorial Avenue and east of Eisenhower Drive and in Building 123 located in the Service Complex at the southern end of the cemetery. Cemetery operation functions occur across the cemetery. Areas primarily used for daily cemetery operations are clustered in the following locations: the Service Complex, a spoils area (currently located in Section 61) and a contractor lay down area (currently located in Section 58) that was relocated from the Millennium Project site in the Fall 2013.
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2.4.4 New Development Areas ANC will also soon include two new interment areas, the Millennium Project site and the Southern Expansion site. The Millennium Project Land use issues in ANC are addressed site is a 27-acre site located in the northwestern corner of ANC. The as part of the RPMP to fulfill the Southern Expansion site is a collection of three parcels of land following RPMP goals: totaling 37 acres that have been transferred to ANC and are located at RPMP Goal #2: “Integrate Core the southern boundary of the cemetery. Mission Requirements -Facilitate and support cemetery mission and 2.4.5 Land Use RPMP Implications operations;” The current pattern of land use at ANC has evolved over time as the RPMP Goal #4: “Enhance cemetery has expanded and matured. Memorial Avenue has been the Experiences - Enhance the learning historic and ceremonial entrance to ANC and is a focal point of and visiting experience for family activity today. ANC intends to maintain this historic entrance as the members and general visitors;” and primary entrance and focal point of activity at least through the mid- RPMP Goal#6: “Provide New term horizon. Interment Capacity - Extend the active life of the cemetery by Moving forward, there are two land use factors that ANC needs to developing new interment areas that address to better complete ANC’s mission. First, additional office compliment the cemetery’s image space is needed to accommodate ANC’s authorized workforce, which and majestic character.” has almost doubled in the past two years to 213 civilians and military personnel. Second, as available first interment areas shift to the far northern and southern reaches of the cemetery (Millennium Project site and Southern Expansion site respectively) some activities may better serve veterans and families if they are also relocated closer to these interment areas.
The majority of ANC administration staff currently work in the Administration Building and in the Welcome Center. The majority of cemetery operations staff work in the Service Complex in Building 123. As currently configured, office space in the Administration Building and Welcome Center are overcrowded and is not adequate to serve mission requirements. The Administration Building, for
The existing Administration Building (shown to the right) is not of sufficient size to meet current mission requirements which include support services for families attending committal services as well as a location for ANC administration staff.
2014 Reprint - Page 23 example, serves as a headquarters location for ANC staff, a major focal point for families attending committal services and the location for Chaplains and other staff directly related to conducting committal services. This situation increases traffic congestion and parking shortages at the Administration Building for families attending committal services.
ANC is addressing the office space shortage in the short-term, although additional space would improve ANC’s ability to support families and inform visitors of ANC’s rich history and traditions. To improve the situation in the short term, ANC is in the process of renovating the entire Welcome Center basement to significantly increase available office space for staff.
Once the Welcome Center renovations have been completed, those ANC administration staff not directly assisting or conducting committal services can be relocated out of the Administration Building. This action could allow the building to be repurposed or reprogrammed as a “Family Support Services” building to better complete ANC’s mission. Shortcomings include the need for increased and improved spaces to accommodate families attending committal services and the ANC Chaplains supporting these families.
In the longer-term, ANC may also consider relocating the family services functions to the Southern Expansion site once the site becomes the only active first-interment area.
2.5 CIRCULATION Memorial Avenue is presently the principal access route to ANC for private vehicles, tour buses and pedestrians arriving by Metrorail. Daily visitors must access the cemetery by foot or via a tour vehicle. Family members attending committal services are allowed to proceed to the Administration Building in their private vehicles. After receiving preparatory instructions from their cemetery representative, A new pedestrian walkway has families are then marshaled into a queue to proceed to the site of the recently been constructed along the committal service. After the service, family members can get a pass length of Eisenhower Drive, one of the to drive their private vehicle into the cemetery to visit the interment primary pedestrian circulation routes site of a loved one. Plate 2.2 is a visual representation of the major in the Cemetery. In an effort to vehicular and pedestrian circulation networks that currently serve minimize the impact to the ANC. Plate 2.3 illustrates the primary committal service procession environment, the paving of the routes and destinations, inclusive of the Millennium Project site and walkway is a pervious material that allows rainwater to absorb into the Southern Expansion site future interment areas. Plate 2.4 illustrates ground rather than become surplus primary routes and destinations used by general visitors to the water that would otherwise be cemetery. collected in a stormwater utility and discharged into the Potomac River.
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Within ANC, primary vehicular and pedestrian circulation is provided by a network of roadways that radiate from a spine formed by Eisenhower Drive, Schley Drive, Sherman Drive, and Meigs Drive. A principal circumferential route in the cemetery is provided by roadways that include Leahy Drive, Patton Drive, Clayton Drive, McPherson Drive, and Ord & Weitzel Drive. There is a relatively low volume of traffic on most cemetery roads and many roads are commonly shared between vehicles and pedestrians.
Dedicated pedestrian walkways are available along Memorial Avenue and Eisenhower Drive. Roosevelt Drive is primarily used by pedestrians to access the President John F. Kennedy Gravesite, the Tomb of the Unknowns and Memorial Amphitheater, and Arlington House.
Bicycle use in the cemetery is generally prohibited. One-way bicycle traffic from JBM-HH to Memorial Avenue is permitted only along a single designated route known as the “White Line Road” route. This route is comprised of Meigs Drive to Sherman Drive to Schley Drive and features a painted white center line to indicate the route.
2.5.1 Committal Service Processions Committal services occur in all parts the cemetery. The majority of first interments take place in the in-ground interment sections and the Columbariums and niche wall located east of Eisenhower Drive. In the future, interments will also occur at the Millennium Project and Southern Expansion parcels.
The historic Old Post Chapel, shown Typically, most committal service processions start at the above, and Memorial Chapel (not Administration Building and then proceed to the interment site. For pictured) are both located on the families who have memorial services at JBM-HH’s historic Old Post western border of the cemetery on Chapel or the larger, more contemporary Memorial Chapel prior to Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall. the committal service, the processions typically start directly from They are common starting points for the chapels and then proceed directly to the interment sites. On some committal service processions in ANC. occasions, committal service processions may start as a “gate meet” at the South Gate entrance to the cemetery off Southgate Road. This can be the case if the family has had a memorial service at a private chapel immediately prior to the committal service at ANC. For committal services with a large number of attendees, these processions can often be staged to begin along Memorial Avenue.
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2.5.2 General Visitor Circulation A key component of the ANC mission is to provide “ ...a place connecting visitors to the rich tapestry of the cemetery’s living history.” 14 According to a recently commissioned transportation study, ANC receives a large number of general visitors per year that range from 3 to 3.5 million people on an annualized basis.15 While general visitor levels are highest during the typical D.C. tourist season of Spring and Summer, there are also a number of special ceremonies and holidays that provide a peak in the daily number of visitors.16 These include: 1. Large services - Easter, Memorial Day, and Veterans Day with 5,000 people attending events in the Memorial Amphitheater 2. Honor Flights - Approximately 500 buses per year total, 40 people per bus 3. Additional annual events - 50 events; average of 2,000 people per event
The typical visitor to ANC travels to three primary areas: the Tomb of the Unknowns (and the Changing of the Guard)/Memorial Amphitheater area, President John F. Kennedy Gravesite, and Arlington House, the Robert E. Lee Memorial. Visitors exploring the cemetery on foot typically start their experience at the Welcome Center after arriving by motor coach as part of an organized tour group, arriving individually by private automobile and parking in the visitors garage, arriving by Metrorail, or by taxi. From the Welcome Center visitors either walk to primary destinations or purchase tickets to ride a tour vehicle operated by the National Park Service. Pedestrians typically walk from the Welcome Center, across Eisenhower Drive to Roosevelt Drive and up the hill towards the President John F. Kennedy Gravesite, Arlington House, and Memorial Amphitheater and the Tomb of the Unknowns.
Through the use of ANC Explorer, an application for smart phones, home computers, information kiosks, and tours, ANC is now actively encouraging visitors to explore the cemetery’s rich history across its full 624 acres. In the future, ANC will use recently acquired concession authority to provide visitors bus access to all 70 sections of ANC.
14 United States Army. (12 January 2012). The Army National Cemeteries Program Campaign Plan Key Components, Structure and Highlights. p.2. 15U.S. Army Military Surface Deployment and Distribution Command. (February 2013). Arlington National Cemetery Comprehensive Traffic Engineering Study. p.4- 5. 16Ibid.
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2.5.3 Southern Expansion Site The three distinct parcels of land comprising the Southern Expansion site are currently served by three major surface roadways: 1. Columbia Pike (Virginia Route 244) - a major four-lane undivided roadway that transitions to a four lane divided roadway as it snakes through the site in a general east-west alignment; 2. Southgate Road – a four-lane divided roadway on independent vertical alignment grades with on-street angled and parallel parking, which traverses in an east to west direction along the northern boundary of the Southern Expansion site adjacent to the existing southern boundary of ANC; and 3. Joyce Street – a four-lane divided roadway that connects to Southgate Road at the intersection with Columbia Pike and then proceeds southward to the Pentagon City neighborhood.
Connections to the regional highway network are provided by Columbia Pike. Columbia Pike’s eastern terminus is a fully directional interchange with Washington Boulevard (Virginia Route 27) at the eastern end of the site. Washington Boulevard provides a direct connection to I-395 South and connections to I-395 North through Rotary Road and the Pentagon parking lot. Since the vacation of Federal Office Building #02 (FOB#2) complex on the Southern Expansion site, surface roadways in the area are primarily used for unofficial Pentagon parking and local circulation to and from the Pentagon, the South Gate of JBM-HH and regional highways.
The Southern Expansion site is directly served by the following public transit bus routes: 1. Arlington Transit (ART) Route 42 - Ballston-Pentagon that traverses Columbia Pike and Joyce Street in the area and provides connection to the Pentagon Metrorail Station (Blue and Yellow Lines); and 2. Metrobus (WMATA) Route 16 A-P - Columbia Pike that traverses Columbia Pike and Joyce Street in the area and provides connections to the Pentagon City and Pentagon Metrorail Stations (Blue and Yellow Lines).
Bus stops for both routes are currently provided along Joyce Street between Columbia Pike and I-395 and along Columbia Pike in the middle of the FOB#2 site.
There are pedestrian connections from the Southern Expansion site to both the Pentagon Metrorail and Pentagon City Metrorail stations,
2014 Reprint - Page 27 although both are in excess of a ½ mile walking distance typically used by planners to describe reasonable walking distances from rail transit stations. Walking distances and typical times from each station are noted as follows: 1. Pentagon Metrorail Station – It is an approximately 1.2 mile/25 minute walk between the Pentagon Metrorail Station and the center of the Southern Expansion site. Pedestrians would traverse North Rotary Road through the Pentagon parking lot north and west toward Columbia Pike and then follow Columbia Pike. Most of the walk is characterized by the automobile-oriented nature of the surrounding area and the lack of shade and vegetation; and 2. Pentagon City Metrorail Station – It is an approximately 1.1 mile/23 minute walk between the Pentagon City Metrorail Station and the center of the Southern Expansion site. Pedestrians would traverse along South Hayes Street or through the Pentagon City Mall northward to Army Navy Drive and then westward to Joyce Street and north to Columbia Pike. This walking connection Figure 2.3 below is an illustration of a provides better pedestrian accommodations through Pentagon preliminary concept developed by City Mall and along Army Navy Drive as well as some shade Arlington County to realign roadways from the I-395 connector ramps and main lane bridges over Joyce in the vicinity of the Southern Street. Expansion site to better accommodate the county’s proposed transit project.
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2.5.4 Future Columbia Pike Transportation Project The Arlington County Board has adopted a plan for public transportation improvement project along Columbia Pike that could result in the eventual realignment of Columbia Pike through the Southern Expansion site area and the construction of a streetcar system to connect to the Pentagon City Metrorail station. The Board has voted twice – in 2006 and again, in 2012, for a streetcar as the preferred transit alternative on Columbia Pike. The streetcar would run 4.9 miles down the Pike, from Pentagon City to the Skyline area of Fairfax County. The County has applied for federal funding through the Federal Transportation Administration’s Small Starts/New Starts program to help fund the streetcar.17 Part of the proposal is to straighten the alignment of Columbia Pike in the area and to reconfigure the on/off ramps to VA Highway 27. (See Figure 2.3)
A future streetcar line along Columbia Pike could be a positive Circulation issues in and around feature for the Southern Expansion site. A connection to the site ANC are addressed as part of the via streetcar would provide better transit access from the Pentagon RPMP to fulfill RPMP Goal #5: City Metrorail Station and would facilitate transit access to the site “Minimize Logistical and for ANC employees, visitors or family members attending services Circulation Conflicts - Minimize or visiting interment sites of loved ones. conflicts between key users and organize traffic flows for pedestrians Arlington County’s proposed realignment of roadways in the area and vehicles to reduce conflicts.” to accommodate the proposed streetcar transit project does present Some issues, such as improvement some potential planning opportunities and challenges for ANC in needs along Memorial Avenue in development of the RPMP. In particular, Arlington County’s vicinity of the Welcome Center will proposal would require acquisition of right-of-way from ANC to require further study and joint action realign Columbia Pike. between ANC and the National Park Service. Other issues, such as the 2.5.5 Circulation RPMP Implications consolidation and/or realignment of roadways in the area of the Southern Three principal circulation issues need to be addressed by RPMP: Expansion site will require 1. There is a need to reduce vehicular congestion and address collaboration between ANC, vehicular/pedestrian conflicts in the vicinity of the Welcome Arlington County and the Virginia Department of Transportation. Center; 2. There is a need to reduce vehicular congestion in vicinity of the Administration Building; and 3. There is a need to remove and/or reconfigure roadways in vicinity of the Southern Expansion site to better connect the site to the cemetery.
17 Arlington County Virginia Newsroom, Arlington County Board Plans March 27 Streetcar Town Hall. (22 March 2013). Retrieved from http:// news.arlingtonva.us/releases/arlington-county-board-plans-march-27-streetcar- town-hall
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An important circulation congestion problem that affects those coming to ANC arises from the vehicular and pedestrian bottlenecks along the cemetery’s main entrance, Memorial Avenue. General visitors, family members attending committal services, family members coming to visit the interment site of a loved one, and persons with business at the Administration Building all typically arrive at ANC via Memorial Avenue either by personal vehicle, taxi, tour bus, or the Metrorail Station. Often, vehicular traffic becomes congested at the ANC checkpoint on Memorial Avenue due to the current procedure of stopping each arriving vehicle to determine whether it should be directed to the Welcome Center parking garage or on to the Administration Building.
For Memorial Avenue, ANC examined some early concepts that could be pursued in cooperation with the NPS at some point in the future. Since many of the congestion issues for vehicles approaching ANC and NPS destinations in the area occur along Memorial Avenue, a roadway under the jurisdiction of NPS, further joint study between ANC and NPS is recommended to devise workable solutions.
In the vicinity of the Administration Building, one of the primary circulation issues examined by the RPMP is the need to reduce vehicular congestion that arises when families typically need to line up their vehicles behind funeral coaches in vicinity of the building before processing to the committal service site. Large committal services with many vehicles can often overwhelm the roadways in vicinity of the Administration Building. Queuing extends into the parking lot for those attending committal services. This can sometimes block families from exiting their parking spaces and/or joining the correct queue. Chapters 3 and 4 of the RPMP propose the establishment of a dedicated committal service procession queuing area to address this issue.
Regarding circulation issues at the Southern Expansion site, the outcome of on-going discussions with Arlington County will influence the future phasing and ultimate development program options available to ANC. ANC would like to acquire Southgate Road to connect the Southern Expansion site parcels to the existing cemetery where practical. Acquisition of the Southgate Road right-of -way and realignment of Columbia Pike by Arlington County and transfer of former Columbia Pike right-of-way east of the Air Force Memorial could afford the opportunity to achieve this objective.
The County’s expressed interest in land for the realignment of Columbia Pike will influence the availability of parcels for cemetery use, particularly those parcels of land between the Air Force
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The Arlington Ridge is the dominant landform along western third of ANC. Memorial and VA Highway 27. Current alignment proposals From this highpoint, the terrain of the developed by Arlington County (see Figure 2.3) would split land cemetery descends towards a mostly into parcels north of Columbia Pike and parcels south of Columbia level plain east of Eisenhower Drive. Pike. Land north of Columbia Pike could be connected to the This topographic change creates many cemetery and provide contiguous development parcels if former important view points both from and to rights-of-way are transferred to ANC. Chapter 3 of the RPMP the cemetery, such as the view to examines development options for ANC under various roadway Pentagon from highpoints in the cemetery in the vicinity of Sections 3 scenarios, including the scenario that all current roadways remain and 34 as shown in the photo above. as they exist today. Chapter 4 of the RPMP proposes a phased development strategy as part of the future development plan.
2.6 TOPOGRAPHY Plate 2.5 is a visual representation of the topography of the cemetery as a whole. Figure 2.4 is an enlarged image of the topography at the Southern Expansion site. The natural lay of the land is one of the significant visual elements of ANC and the Southern Expansion site. The Arlington Ridge is the dominant
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As shown in Figure 2.4 above, the landform across the western third of the cemetery. The ridge and Southern Expansion site is four principal valleys create a deeply contoured landscape that characterized by a significant change dominates the visual character of the cemetery west of Eisenhower in topography. Elevations across the Drive. East of Eisenhower Drive the terrain slopes more gradually Southern Expansion site range from a and gently to the eastern boundary of the cemetery. There is more high point of close to 200 feet in the than 200 feet of topographic change across the cemetery between the western portion of the site to a low western and eastern boundaries. Generally speaking, high points in point of close to 20 feet just east of the site. the cemetery are located along the western boundary of the cemetery in the vicinity of Meigs Drive and McPherson Drive in Section 13. In this location, contours range from 250 feet to 200 feet above mean sea level. Arlington House and Section 11 are also located in this contour interval. Given the importance of topography From the Arlington House promontory, the topography of the in the visual and functional landscape cemetery steeply descends into valleys to the north and south and of ANC, topographic issues (elevation more gently down to Eisenhower Drive and Memorial Avenue to the and grade) were an important factor east. The elevation at Memorial Avenue and Eisenhower Drive is in the planning for the Southern more 150 feet lower than Arlington House. The lowest points in the Expansion site in a manner that supports RPMP Goal#6: “Provide cemetery can be found between Eisenhower Drive and the eastern New Interment Capacity, Extend the boundary where contours range from 50 feet to 10 feet above mean active life of the cemetery by sea level. developing new interment areas that compliment the cemetery’s image and majestic character.”
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Figure 2.5 above is an illustration of the analysis of slope across the 2.6.1 Topography RPMP Implications Southern Expansion site. Areas in red, or slopes greater than 25%, are Figure 2.4 is a visual representation of the topography that not suitable for interment unless characterizes the Southern Expansion site, the largest proposed significant regrading occurs. Areas development site being addressed by the RPMP. The figure shows indicated in yellow, with slopes contour intervals in fifty foot increments. The site contains an greater than 12% but less than 25%, extension of the Arlington Ridge that forms the site’s western may be suitable for some forms of plateau west of the Air Force Memorial. This high plateau is interment, such as in-ground separated from the existing cemetery to the north by a valley where inurnment, or are also suitable for Southgate Road is located. The relatively high and flat terrain in the memorial markers, but may require plateau area allows for views to the cemetery from the site and some adjustments to the existing grade to maximize yield and ease of creates the opportunity for a visual connection to the cemetery access for visitors. across Southgate Road.
From the high plateau area of the western portion of the Southern Expansion site, the ground slopes gently across the area formerly occupied by the FOB#2 office complex to the Air Force Memorial. East of the Air Force Memorial, the ground slopes rather steeply down to Columbia Pike. East of Columbia Pike to the Service Complex and the highway ramps to VA Highway 27, the ground continues to descend to the lowest elevation point in the area in the vicinity of the Service Complex.
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Figure 2.5 shows areas of steeply sloped land where the grade change is severe over the span of a short distance. Grade or slope is one of the determinants of what types of interments may be suitable on a particular parcel of ground. For example, the combination of steep slopes and proximity to current road alignments east of the Air Force Memorial limits development of interment uses in this area. While the area may be suitable for in-ground inurnments and memorial The view from the clearing at the markers, it is not suitable for in-ground interment of casketed remains hilltop in front of Arlington House as presently configured. The large flat plateau area that was the site of provides an expansive panorama of the former FOB#2 office complex west of the Air Force Memorial is Washington D.C. in the distance and very suitable site for all types of interments. to the cemetery grounds below. The photo shows a view in the northeast As visible in Figures 2.4 and 2.5, there is a significant and dramatic direction, down Memorial Avenue and the Arlington Memorial Bridge to change in elevation going from west to east across the Southern the Lincoln Memorial and Expansion site. ANC considered topography and grade in the Washington D.C. The gravesite of development of programming options for the Southern Expansion site Pierre L’Enfant, credited for the early as part of the RPMP. Development options are discussed further in city planning of Washington D.C., can Chapter 3. be seen in the foreground to the right.
2.7 VIEWS AND EXPOSURE Plate 2.6 is a visual representation of the significant viewsheds from and to ANC. Generally speaking, the combination of topography and vegetation can greatly shape or limit the long range views available
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from various vantage points within the cemetery. Long range views from the cemetery to Washington, D.C. are available from the Arlington House plateau, Pershing Drive, Section 34, and from the Southern Expansion site in vicinity of the Air Force Memorial. From these vantage points there are long range views to the National Mall and prominent structures of Washington D.C., as well Given the visibility of the Southern as views into the cemetery below. Hilltops and valleys planted with Expansion site and character of the mature trees along the Arlington Ridge that run south to north in the surrounding development, views and western third of the cemetery are the prominent visual element of exposures issues were important ANC from the east. Prominent landmarks in the vicinity of ANC considerations in planning for the that are visible from distant vantage points to the east include Southern Expansion site to support RPMP Goal#6: “Provide New Arlington House and the Air Force Memorial. Interment Capacity, Extend the Arlington Memorial Bridge and Memorial Avenue provide a active life of the cemetery by developing new interment areas that significant ceremonial entry vista to the cemetery and Arlington compliment the cemetery’s image and House. There are also broad, long range views of the cemetery from majestic character.” the Arlington Memorial Bridge.
There are several important short range views to the cemetery from roadways bounding the cemetery. These include several view points to the cemetery from Virginia Highway 110 along the eastern boundary of ANC and views to cemetery across the Southern Expansion site from I-395.
2.7.1 Views and Exposure RPMP Implications The Southern Expansion site is the portion of the cemetery where views and exposure issues to and from the cemetery are important considerations for the RPMP. Given the Southern Expansion site’s visibility and exposure at the southern portion of the cemetery, new development at the site will have the potential to extend the cemetery image to the south. Conversely, developed neighborhoods to the west of the Southern Expansion site, and Columbia Pike and I -395 to the south of the site will require careful planning and design to screen development in the cemetery from surrounding uses and create a serene cemetery environment.
Issues addressed during the development of the RPMP included the need to screen incompatible views from proposed cemetery interment areas. The primary issue of concern is the need to screen the main interment site (the former FOB#2 office complex site) from Columbia Pike, the VDOT maintenance yard, I-395, and the adjoining Foxcroft Heights neighborhood. Careful placement and design of interment areas and extensive use of screening elements such as berms, landscape, walls, structures, and other buffering techniques may be required to create a serene environment suitable for a cemetery.
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The computer generated image above ANC recognizes the need to visually connect the Southern Expansion shows a portion of the Southern site with the established cemetery to the north of Southgate Road. Expansion site and the Air Force The most prominent long range views from the Southern Expansion Memorial looking northwest from site are from the former FOB#2 office complex plateau site. Visual I-395. It illustrates the opportunity to connections between this site and the cemetery to the north across extend the iconic image of cemetery headstones onto the hillsides south Southgate Road are very important. Since the roadway is located at a and east of the Air Force Memorial lower elevation than the plateau site a visual connection to between north of Columbia Pike if the roadway the plateau site and cemetery to the north is possible. Southgate is realigned and the area can be Road may also be able to become part of the cemetery proper at some developed into a suitable in-ground point in the future which would enable both a visual and functional interment area at some point in the connection of the Southern Expansion site and the cemetery to the future. north.
2.8 VEGETATIVE COVER There are approximately 8,400 trees at Arlington National Cemetery. There are about 300 varieties of trees, including a population of very large and ancient canopy trees. The State Champion Pin Oak is in section 35 and is considered the largest specimen in the Pin Oak
18 Exploring the Cemetery, the Grounds at Arlington Cemetery. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/VisitorInformation/Grounds.aspx
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ANC features a lush green landscape punctuated by single specimen trees placed in random patterns, clustered in small groupings, grouped densely as a back drop, or aligned in formal rows. This landscape gives ANC unique character and form across the cemetery. The ground plane is predominantly well-maintained turf grasses providing a consistent image and identity to in-ground interment areas. Shrubs, ground cover and perennials are used to highlight special places and points of interest within the cemetery, around monuments and plazas, and in the Columbarium Courts.
species in the state of Virginia.18 There are also many diverse plantings of shrubs, perennials, and several annual planting beds throughout the cemetery.
Plate 2.7 depicts ANC’s current vegetative cover of trees. Clusters of trees and solitary specimen trees interspersed across the landscape are an important part of the iconic ANC image. Mature tree stands and specimen trees can be found in the older sections of the cemetery west of Eisenhower Drive. Hillsides and valleys in this area have the largest concentrations of tree cover.
East of Eisenhower Drive is a newer development area, in which trees were planted predominantly in a formal manner lining the
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Ornamental trees and ground plantings provide vegetative cover and areas across ANC such as the Columbairum Courts shown in the photo to the left.
Given the importance of trees as part roadways. Some tree plantings have also been made within the of the vegetative cover and landscape interment sections and along the perimeter niche wall but this area has heritage of ANC, the planting and maintenance of trees at appropriate much newer and fewer trees than in older interment sections within densities was an important factor to the cemetery. be addressed in the RPMP in support of RPMP Goal#1: “Cultivate Key 2.8.1 Vegetative Cover RPMP Implications Attributes - Preserve the serenity, Vegetative cover is one of the key form-giving elements at ANC, as it beauty, iconic image, and tranquility provides a strong visual identity, a serene setting and shade and shelter in the existing cemetery and promote for family members visiting the interment sites of loved ones. The these qualities in new development areas.” continued preservation and replacement of significant vegetation resources across ANC is required in order to maintain the iconic ANC has a fulltime horticultural staff image and identity offered by the landscape. ANC already replaces in addition to numerous landscape annually 240 trees lost due to age, disease or damage in order to maintenance contractors working to sustain the landscape of the cemetery. maintain the visual landscape character of the cemetery. As ANC In support of RPMP Goal #1, more designs its expansion areas, it should also prioritize planting and than 240 trees lost to age, disease or preserving older and more mature trees in a less structured placement weather are replaced annually. pattern to help extend the landscape character of the established Additionally, the Cemetery Design cemetery into new development areas. Guide document contains standards and recommendations for tree The Cemetery Design Guide presents further analysis and plantings in new development areas recommendations regarding landscape design standards, policies and such as the Millennium Project site actions required to maintain the iconic landscape image of ANC. and Southern Expansion site. Chapter 4 of this report contains a discussion of ANC’s proposal to seek designation of ANC as a National Arboretum.
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2.9 UTILITY SERVICES The cemetery is served by underground electrical, water, sewer, stormwater, communications (fiber and copper), and natural gas utilities. The Engineering Directorate is updating its maps, conditions surveys and maintenance and repair schedules for existing utilities. As a result, the RPMP contains only known information when it was published.
Generally speaking, most utilities across ANC are aging and need some level of repair. For example, most segments of storm sewers and water lines west of Eisenhower Drive are over fifty years old and are in critical condition requiring immediate repair. ANC has included these maintenance backlog projects within its annual budget and 10 year capital investment strategy. In FY13, ANC requested and Congress approved $20 million to begin completing critical maintenance and repair of ANC’s utilities and infrastructure to return them to a sustainable condition.
The following pages present a brief overview of each major utility system serving ANC. Plates 2.8 - 2.12 at the end of this chapter depict the various major utility networks and system attributes.
Some areas of ANC (such as the grounds around the Memorial Amphitheater shown in the photo on the right) require supplemental irrigation to maintain the health and appearance of vegetation in a manner keeping with the importance of a national shrine. The potential may exist to capture stormwater runoff from the cemetery, store it and use if for irrigation with non-potable water, particularly in vicinity of Southern Expansion site as it develops. This approach would have two primary benefits. First, it would reduce the consumption of potable water, a limited and expensive resource. Second, it would reduce the introduction of runoff into the Potomac River, a critical water 2.9.1 Water Service management resource of the Chesapeake Bay. ANC is served by a robust network of potable water lines generally located along or within most roadways throughout the cemetery. According to available mapping, primary service lines range in size from 8 inches to 24 inches in diameter and are primarily located along Eisenhower Drive and in the eastern part of the cemetery
2014 Reprint - Page 39 along Memorial Avenue, Patton Drive, and Bradley Drive. Secondary service lines (1 inch to 6 inches in diameter) are generally located across the portion of the cemetery west of Eisenhower Drive. Water service for domestic uses and fire fighting is provided to principal occupied structures, including the Welcome Center, Administration Building, the Service Complex, Arlington House, Memorial Amphitheater, and smaller lodges and structures across the cemetery and on lands under NPS jurisdiction. In addition, water service is available at a number of hydrant/faucet locations across the cemetery. These include: preposition areas for Caissons to service the horses and ceremonial units, to replenish water features, and to irrigate select landscaped areas in the cemetery. Water fire connection points are also provided in key locations across the Given the importance of resource cemetery. (See Plate 2.8) conservation and the need for all federal agencies to reduce energy and 2.9.2 Sanitary Sewer Service resource consumption and operating The dominant sanitary sewer service line in the cemetery is the costs, repair and improvement of relocated Potomac Interceptor line, a 42 inch sanitary sewer line that inefficient utility systems was an generally follows the alignment of Eisenhower Drive. Primary important factor to be addressed in the RPMP in support of RPMP Goal gravity service lines and laterals can be found leading to principal #7: “Use Resources Wisely - Employ facilities in the cemetery and lands under the jurisdiction of NPS sustainability initiatives and design including the Service Complex, the Memorial Amphitheater, the approaches throughout all cemetery Superintendent’s Lodge, Arlington House, and the Women In activities achieving a net zero impact Military Service for America Memorial. The Welcome Center, when possible.” Administration Building, and Columbarium Courts are served by a Recommendations in the RPMP main sewer line that exits the cemetery in the vicinity of York Drive include reducing stormwater runoff by and Patton Drive. (See Plate 2.9) re-using stormwater resources where possible. 2.9.3 Stormwater Service ANC has an extensive stormwater management network designed to serve all roadways and parking areas located within the cemetery. The drainage shed of the cemetery is defined by topography and is generally organized into two major outfall points, a 72 inch line located in the northeastern quadrant of the cemetery and an 84 inch line located in the southeastern quadrant of the cemetery. Two additional 36 inch lines leave the cemetery in the vicinity of the visitor’s parking garage. Generally speaking, these four outfall points provide drainage to the entirety of the existing cemetery. (See Plate 2.10)
2.9.4 Electrical Service Electrical service is provided to principal facilities in the cemetery and lands under the jurisdiction of NPS via underground service. Primary services comes from a primary feeder line that roughly follows Eisenhower Drive to serve the Welcome Center, the
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Administration Building, the visitor’s parking garage, the Service Complex, and the Women In Military Service for America Memorial. Electric service to the Superintendent’s Lodge, Arlington House, the Memorial Amphitheater, the Kennedy Gravesite, and the Millennium Project site comes from JBM-HH through a conduit located along Meigs Drive. A connecting loop is proposed between the Eisenhower Drive main feeder and Halsey Drive line to provide redundant power to the Welcome Center and Administration Building area. (See Plate 2.11)
As the cemetery and NPS attractions are not open to visitors after dark, roadways in the cemetery are not lit at night and electrical service is generally not available beyond principal facilities.
2.9.5 Natural Gas Service Natural gas service in the cemetery is limited to the northern and eastern portions of ANC and the Service Complex according to available mapping. Natural gas is used for space heating, heating domestic hot water, and for the President John F. Kennedy Eternal Flame memorial. (See Plate 2.12)
2.9.6 Utility Services RPMP Implications Existing utility service, along with planned repair and improvement projects currently envisioned by ANC leadership, will result in a utility infrastructure adequate to accommodate the needs of ANC well into the future. In addition, ANC is including within the design of new projects ways to minimize the introduction of pollutants from stormwater runoff to regional water systems, namely the nearby Potomac River, as new interment areas are developed at the Millennium Project site and the Southern Expansion site. At the Southern Expansion site, ANC will also address utility consolidation and relocation opportunities within Southgate Road to improve the availability of interment areas should Southgate Road become part of ANC in the future. This is discussed in Section 2.9.7.
Use of natural vegetation, pervious Given the importance of managing stormwater runoff, the RPMP pavement, rain gardens and other includes a focus of reducing runoff from ANC into the Potomac stormwater infiltration techniques, as River watershed from new development areas. ANC is largely a shown in the photo examples above, pervious landscape where stormwater can infiltrate into the ground are all strategies that could be in most areas. Runoff is substantially less than would be the case if explored in the design phase to ensure the area were developed with urban uses. However, ANC is there is no net run-off of stormwater committed to being as good of a steward of the environment as from the Southern Expansion site once it has been redeveloped for cemetery feasible. As a result, the RPMP recommends ANC explore in the uses. future a number of strategies to further reduce surface runoff, including exploring the opportunity to capture stormwater currently
2014 Reprint - Page 41 piped off the cemetery and reuse this water resource for irrigation and other non-potable water purposes. For instance, ANC could collect or intercept stormwater at the two major outfall points from the cemetery and/or major junction points within the cemetery, and pipe/pump this water to underground storage cisterns for future re-use. This water resource could be tied to the cemetery’s irrigation system to reduce the requirement for the use of potable water for irrigation purposes. It could also be used for other non-potable water needs such as gray water systems in new principal facilities or major remodeling projects for existing facilities. This concept will need further engineering feasibility analysis beyond what was examined in the RPMP and could require the cooperation of JBM-HH, NPS, VDOT, and/or Arlington County as storage tanks and/or transmission lines may need to be located on lands currently under jurisdictions outside of ANC boundaries.
ANC could also explore the opportunity to incorporate innovative non -piped stormwater management approaches as part of the design and development of new areas such as the Millennium Project site and the Southern Expansion site. Bioswales, rain gardens, pervious pavement, and tree box inlets are some concepts that could be explored to reach ANC’s objective of no net stormwater runoff during the design phase of new projects.
Southgate Road, shown in the photo to the left looking west from the intersection of Columbia Pike and Joyce Street, contains a number of underground utilities as well as overhead power lines. Consolidation and/or relocation or removal of surplus utility capacity would be required to provide flexibility for interment options should Southgate Road become part of ANC in the future. Overhead power lines, for example, would not be compatible with cemetery development and these would need to be relocated underground or could be removed entirely if surplus power service formerly used by the FOB#2 office 2.9.7 Utility Services RPMP Implications - Southgate Road complex could be used to supply requirements currently being met by The other major utility service issue with RPMP implications is the the overhead lines. potential acquisition of Southgate Road. Southgate Road could potentially be included in the development of the Southern Expansion site subject to further discussions with Arlington County.
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To maximize the usefulness of the Southgate Road right-of-way for interment, the RPMP identifies there is a need to consolidate and/or reduce the number of utilities that are presently located in the corridor.
Currently, Southgate Road is a major utility corridor that contains a host of utility services, including utilities that are no longer needed to serve the former FOB#2 office complex development. Many of these utilities (namely communications, electrical, water, sewer, stormwater, and heated and chilled water lines for building climate control) can be removed. There will be at least some minor electrical, water and sanitary service requirements for new development on the Southern Expansion site; service demand will ultimately depend on whether administrative, family services or other support facilities are eventually relocated here.
The largest concentration of utilities in the Southgate Road corridor are located towards the southern curb line of the west-bound lanes of the roadway and in the grassy median. While these utilities had been sized to serve dense development on the Southern Expansion site, they also appear to serve developed areas to the west of the site. Given the significant reduction in intensity of development associated with the demolition of the former FOB#2 office complex, some significant opportunities for utility size reduction, consolidation and/or relocation may be possible to free up land for interment options should Southgate Road become part of ANC in the future.
The other concentration of utilities in the Southgate Road corridor are located along the southern curb line of the east-bound lanes of the roadway and immediately south of the existing curb line. For the most part, these utilities appear to have been installed to serve the requirements of the former FOB#2 complex. Many of these utilities may no longer be required, such as the chilled and heated water line service used by the building mechanical systems, and may be able to be removed. Other utilities along Southgate Road, such as the underground power line, storm sewer and sanitary sewer lines could be resized, reduced or relocated based on the significantly lower utility requirements of proposed development on this site for cemetery purposes. Removal, consolidation, relocation, or co-location with remaining utilities in the west-bound lanes of Southgate Road could create further opportunities and flexibility for interment options should Southgate Road become part of ANC in the future.
The corridor does provide some utility services that will need to be retained, namely to serve the residential and commercial areas west
2014 Reprint - Page 43 of the Southern Expansion site. It also provides electrical, water and sewer services to the Air Force Memorial site and provides communications and heated and chilled water lines that run between the Pentagon and JBM-HH. To maximize the availability of land for interment uses, some of these utilities could either be consolidated or relocated. Redundant utilities could be removed.
Another requirement will be the need to replace the overhead power line service located in the median of Southgate Road with the excess capacity that should be available from the underground power supply line that served the former FOB#2 complex. Overhead power lines are incompatible with ANC and these overhead lines would need to be removed.
Further detailed utility studies and engineering analysis will be required during the follow on planning and design for the Southern Expansion site to adequately assess excess capacities, redundancies and opportunities for utility removal, relocation, or consolidation should Southgate Road become part of ANC in the future. For the purposes of the RPMP, it is assumed that some redundancy and consolidation or relocation is possible in order to increase flexibility for interment options.
2.10 REGIONAL PLANNING CONSIDERATIONS
Planners reviewed a number of published master plans available from Roadway and land use planning adjoining jurisdictions and entities. ANC used these master plan implications contained in regional documents to evaluate potential impacts on the cemetery and to plans need to be considered as part of consider if proposals in the ANC RPMP would have impacts on the RPMP to adequately address outside agency master planning efforts. Generally speaking, RPMP Goal #5: “Minimize proposals being considered for ANC as part of the RPMP appear to Logistical and Circulation be compatible with surrounding jurisdictions’ plans. The EAs contain Conflicts - Minimize conflicts between key users and organize additional discussions on this matter. traffic flows for pedestrians and vehicles to reduce conflicts.” Plans reviewed and considered during the development of the SRC/ LRC document included: As they exist today, the three separate parcels that form the Southern 1. Joint Base Myer, Henderson Hall Draft Real Property Master Plan Expansion site are not connected to (Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall LRC, Jan 2012) the cemetery and are separated from 2. US NPS George Washington Memorial Parkway General each other and the cemetery by a series of public roadways. ANC has Management Plan (http://www.nps.gov/gwmp/parkmgmt/ expressed the desire to create more documents.htm) contiguous and flexible development 3. Rehabilitate Arlington House, the Robert E. Lee Memorial, parcels at the Southern Expansion Outbuildings and Grounds (http://parkplanning.nps.gov/ site and to better connect those sites projectHome.cfm?projectID=14952) to internal cemetery circulation roadways. 4. Arlington County Plan for Columbia Pike (http:// www.columbiapikeva.us/)
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5. Pentagon Reservation Master Plan (Washington Headquarters Services, May 2005) (http://www.whs.mil/About/docs/) DAMStrategicPlan2007-12.pdf)
2.10.1 Regional Planning RPMP Implications Planning for the Southern Expansion site needs to consider plans developed by JBM-HH, the Pentagon, VDOT, and Arlington County. The Southern Expansion site is adjacent to roadways and developed areas of interest to all four entities. Roadways and development in the area have been the subject of recent planning activity referenced at the start of this section. In all the cited plans, transfer of the Southern Expansion site to ANC and development of the land for cemetery purposes is acknowledged.
The Arlington County Plan for Columbia Pike is the plan that has the greatest impact to the timing, parcel configuration and ultimate development program for the Southern Expansion site. Columbia Pike is a major artery that traverses and splits the parcels associated with the Southern Expansion site. The baseline assumption used in the RPMP is that all roadways in the area remain in their current configuration, although all parties are actively working together to address this constraint to future development in the area.
The Arlington County plan proposes the ultimate realignment of Columbia Pike and Joyce Street and a reconfiguration of the VA- 27 interchange. These roadway changes would create requirements for new rights-of-ways across some of the Southern Expansion site parcels as discussed under the Circulation section of this Chapter. These rights-of-way would require use of land transferred to ANC, and the County has expressed an interest in land for the realignment of Columbia Pike and additional lands for other purposes in a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between ANC and Arlington County that was executed in early January 2013.
As part of the MOU, ANC has expressed an interest in the transfer of Southgate Road right-of-way to ANC. The interests of both parties have not been finalized or agreed to as of the writing of this RPMP document. Given the potential for some near term and ultimate long term changes in roadway alignments in the area, the RPMP has examined a number of possible ANC planning responses for the Southern Expansion site. The RPMP examines a potential partial development scenario where Southgate Road is acquired by ANC. The RPMP also examines a long term scenario where Columbia Pike is realigned and the former right-of-way from Columbia Pike is transferred to ANC, and the easement for Joyce Street north of the realigned Columbia Pike is returned to
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ANC. Coordination with VDOT will be required in the discussion of rights of way under their jurisdiction.
Another recommendation in the Arlington County Plan for Columbia Pike that has implications on the Southern Expansion site is the suggestion that Arlington County secure a 55 foot easement along the western edge of the FOB#2 site for the County to construct a new access road to connect the terminus of Southgate Road with Columbia Pike. This action is discussed in the Arlington County Plan for Columbia Pike , the Pentagon Reservation Transportation Plan and in the current draft of JBM-HH RPMP. This proposal could reduce traffic impacts to the Foxcraft Heights neighborhood for persons traveling to/from Columbia Pike and the Pentagon and JBM-HH if Southgate Road were closed by the County and transferred to ANC. It would also have the effect of reducing available interment space on the FOB#2 site. Impacts to the proposed development program for the FOB#2 portion of the Southern Expansion site could be offset by other land transfers from the County including Southgate Road and the former right-of-way of Columbia Pike east of the Air Force Memorial.
In addition to the reconfiguration of roadways and County land interests, the Arlington County Plan for Columbia Pike proposes more extensive landscape and screening requirements along the Columbia Pike corridor as the area redevelops. The requirement for increased landscape treatments along Columbia Pike on adjoining private development property is consistent with landscape screening concepts anticipated by ANC for the Southern Expansion site.
Proposed transit improvements outlined in the Arlington County Plan for Columbia Pike could benefit the cemetery by providing better public transit access for workers, visitors and families who may be coming to cemetery activities located at the Southern Expansion site.
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Joint Base Plate 2.1: 5 Memorial Chapel Myer-Henderson Hall Major Activity Zones
Joint Base LEGEND: Myer-Henderson Hall 9 Arrival Zone: 1. Parking Garage 2. Welcome Center 3. Administration Building Lands Under NPS Jurisdiction 4. Old Post Chapel 5. Memorial Chapel 16 Primary Interment Zones: 17 6. In-Ground First Interment Foxcroft Sections with Most Capacity Heights 15 7. Columbarium Court #9 8. Niche Wall 9. Millennium Project Site 10. Southern Expansion Site 10 14 Cemetery Operations Zones: Lands Under 11. Current Spoils Area (Sect.61) NPS 12. Current Contractor Area Jurisdiction Air (Sect. 58) Force 6 Memorial 13. Service Complex 3 2 Primary Visitor Destinations: 14. Women in Military Service I-395 10 for America Memorial 1 15. J.F. Kennedy Gravesites 10 16. Arlington House Complex 13 11 12 17. Tomb of the Unknowns and Memorial Amphitheater 6
8 7
The Pentagon NORTH
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Old Post Chapel Plate 2.2: Memorial Chapel Joint Base Circulation Myer-Henderson Hall Joint Base LEGEND: Myer-Henderson Hall Primary walking 5 Primary Circulation Spine: 11 paths to key 1. Memorial Drive destinations 7 2. Eisenhower Drive 3. Schley Drive 4. Sherman Drive 5. Meigs Drive 4 6. Route to Southern Expansion site (future) 12 Foxcroft 10 7. Route to Millennium Project Heights Site (future) Circumferential Loop: 8. Leahy Drive 9. Patton Drive 3 10. Clayton Drive Current tour 11. McPherson Drive 6 vehicle route 12. Ord & Weitzel Drive
Air Force Other Primary Roads Memorial 2 Welcome Center Secondary Roads Family Services Major Pedestrian Walkways I-395 1 Primary Walking Paths to Key 8 Destination Service Complex Tour Vehicle Route
9 Parking Areas
The Pentagon NORTH
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Old Post Chapel 7 Plate 2.3: Joint Base Primary Committal Memorial Chapel 8 Myer-Henderson Hall Joint Base Procession Routes and Myer-Henderson Hall Destinations
6 LEGEND:
Key Destinations: 1. Traffic Check Point on Memorial Drive – All Traffic Stops 2. Family Services Building 3. Current In-Ground Interment Foxcroft at Section 60 Heights 4. Interment in Columbarium Court #9 (future) 5. Interment in the Southern Expansion site (future) 6. Interment in the Millennium Project site (future) 5 7. Old Post Chapel Services and Processions 8. Memorial Chapel Services Air and Processions Force Memorial Symbols: 2 1 Path of Traffic I-395
Check Point
Key Destination or 3 Origin Point
4
NORTH The Pentagon
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Plate 2.4: Joint Base General Visitors’ Routes Myer-Henderson Hall Joint Base and Destinations Myer-Henderson Hall LEGEND:
Primary Vehicular Destinations: 1. Traffic Check Point on Memorial Drive 2. Parking Garage
7 6 Key Visitor Destinations (normally on foot): Foxcroft 3. Welcome Center Building Heights 5 4. Women in Military Service of America Memorial 5. Kennedy Grave Site 6. Arlington House 7. Tomb of the Unknowns and Memorial Amphitheater 4 Symbols:
Air Vehicle Travel Force Pedestrian Travel Memorial 3 Tour Vehicle Route
1 Check Point I-395 Key Destination or 2 Origin Point
Family Services/ Administrative Building
NORTH The Pentagon
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Plate 2.5: 2 Joint Base Topography Myer-Henderson Hall Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall LEGEND:
Major Contour Intervals:
200 – 250 Feet 3 150 – 200 Feet 1 100 – 150 Feet Foxcroft Heights 50 – 100 Feet
4 0 – 50 Feet
Highpoints: 1. Arlington House
Air 2. Section 13 Force Memorial 3. Section 11 4. Western Edge, Southern Expansion Site
I-395
The Pentagon NORTH
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Plate 2.6: Joint Base Major View Sheds Myer-Henderson Hall Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall LEGEND: Arlington Ridge Dominant Visible Structures: 3 1. Arlington House, (not in the cemetery) 2. Air Force Memorial (not in the cemetery) 1 Dominant Landform Foxcroft Feature Heights 3. Arlington Ridge Feature
Expansive Views from the Cemetery
Expansive Views to the Cemetery
Distant Views to ANC Area Landmarks from 2 Washington DC
I-395
The Pentagon NORTH
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Plate 2.7: Joint Base Vegetative Cover Myer-Henderson Hall Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall LEGEND:
Major Tree Canopy Groups:
Deciduous
Coniferous
Foxcroft Heights
Air Force Memorial
I-395
The Pentagon NORTH
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Plate 2.8: Joint Base Water Utility Service Myer-Henderson Hall Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall LEGEND:
Water Lines: 6” or Less 8”-16” 18” 24” TBD (under investigation) Foxcroft Heights Water System Features Fire Hydrant Connection Points Water Hydrant
Water Junction Point
Air Water Valve Point Force Memorial
I-395
The Pentagon NORTH
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Plate 2.9: Joint Base Wastewater Utility Myer-Henderson Hall Service Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall LEGEND:
Wastewater Lines: Abandoned 4”-12” In Service 15”-21” In Service 30”-36” In Service 42” In Service Unknown Size In Service Foxcroft Heights Wastewater System Feature Junction Point
Air Force Memorial
I-395
The Pentagon NORTH
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Plate 2.10: Joint Base Stormwater Utility Myer-Henderson Hall Service Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall LEGEND:
Stormwater Lines: Abandoned Open Culvert 6”-18” In Service 20”-36” In Service 42”-48” In Service 60” In Service Foxcroft Heights 72” In Service 84” In Service Unknown Size In Service
Stormwater System Feature Discharge Point
Air Inlet Point Force Memorial Junction Point
I-395
The Pentagon NORTH
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Plate 2.11: Joint Base Electric Utility Service Myer-Henderson Hall Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall LEGEND:
Electric Service Lines: In Service Proposed
Electric Service System Feature Junction Point Foxcroft Heights Switch Point
Air Force Memorial
I-395
The Pentagon NORTH
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Plate 2.12: Joint Base Natural Gas Utility Myer-Henderson Hall Service Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall LEGEND:
Natural Gas Service Lines: Main Line - Abandoned Main Line – In Service Service Line – In Service
Natural Gas Service System Feature Foxcroft Valve Point Heights
Air Force Memorial
I-395
The Pentagon NORTH
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The image to the left is a conceptual rendering of an early planning concept considered for the development of the Southern Expansion site during the preparation of the RPMP.
RPMP Concept Drawing Only
3. PLANNING OPTIONS CONSIDERED
3.1 OVERVIEW Chapter 3 of the RPMP presents planning options considered during the development of the RPMP. Options are described in terms of potential courses of action (COAs). The chapter also contains an evaluation of the COAs. Chapter 4 contains the proposed future development plan that reflects decisions made by ANC leadership as part of the RPMP. Appendix A presents an overview of planning options developed for SAHNC.
Three main elements drove the development of planning options for the RPMP. They are: 1. ANC mission requirements as documented in Chapter 1; 2. RPMP goals developed as documented in Chapter 1; and 3. Development requirements informed by existing conditions and An Interpretive Center, such as the new visitor’s center at the Normandy planning implications as noted in Chapter 2. American Cemetery and Memorial in Normandy, France, shown above, is a key missing element at ANC. This 3.2 FUNCTIONAL ELEMENTS chapter suggests a number of viable ANC is an almost 150-year old open military cemetery, a significant alternatives to provide this key missing resource that would visitor destination and the headquarters location for the Arlington significantly enhance the visitor National Cemetery and Army National Military Cemeteries experience at ANC. organizations. A key requirement of the RPMP is to create a future development plan that accommodates competing functions in a balanced way. Various cemetery functions must occur in an environment steeped in history and rich in tradition, but also largely developed with limited opportunities for expansion. ANC and the
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Nation also expect that every activity is executed to highest possible standards. This chapter discusses planning options to meet the present and future requirements of ANC according to five main topic areas. These are: 1. Cemetery operations, including grounds maintenance, interment preparation and interment spoils; 2. Accommodations for veterans, families, and Chaplains attending committal services; 3. Accommodations for ANC administration staff; 4. General visitor experience; and 5. New interment area development.
3.3 CEMETERY OPERATIONS, GROUNDS MAINTENANCE Ensuring that the daily basic AND NTERMENT POILS cemetery operations requirements are I S met is a key focus of the RPMP. This ANC examined functional requirements for on-going basic cemetery is needed to continue operations well operations including the need to identify new land areas for cemetery into the future as activities become grounds maintenance and interment spoils as part of the RPMP. Key more constrained due to limited land requirements are: availability. RPMP Goal #2:“Address Core 1. Grounds Maintenance Area - Identify a new location for cemetery Mission Requirements - Facilitate grounds maintenance contractors given the displacement from the and support cemetery mission and Millennium Project site; and operations,” is a key goal addressed 2. Spoils Area - Identify a more permanent location for interment by this section of the RPMP. spoils so the current spoils area can be relocated from Section 61 and the section can be developed for in-ground interments.
As an open cemetery, the daily operations of the cemetery include maintaining cemetery grounds and excavations for in-ground interments which generates surplus soils that need to be removed.
The maintenance of cemetery grounds requires storing of materials, such as mulch, top soil and plants, and storing maintenance equipment used by contractors in daily grounds and landscape maintenance operations. The excavation of interment sites for in-ground interments and inurnments generates surplus soils that need to be moved, stored and eventually re-used or hauled from the cemetery. These functions occupy land that is programmed for interment use during the RPMP planning horizon. For example, the previouse site of the primary grounds maintenance contractor area was relocated due the development of the Millennium Project site in 2013. The current site of the primary spoils storage area, Section 61, is planned for conversion to an in-ground interment area in the future.
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Figure 3.1 above illustrates the current ANC considered a number of options to address short- and long-term location of cemetery grounds requirements for these two key functional requirements, which this maintenance contractor and spoils section discusses. Figure 3.1 illustrates the current and possible future areas and possible locations locations for cemetery grounds maintenance contractor areas and spoils considered for relocation. areas.
3.3.1 Grounds Maintenance Contractor Area The availability and location of space used by grounds maintenance contractors is an important operational requirement at ANC. The former primary location at the Old Warehouse Area in the Millennium Project site had to be relocated to accommodate construction of the site which began in 2013.
ANC has not historically specified how much space or what location will be provided on-site to horticultural and other maintenance and construction contractors in contracts with those providers. Contracts do specify, however, that an area is to be provided. If no on-site staging or storage areas are available, contractors would be responsible to bring materials and equipment in and out of ANC daily and the costs for services and impacts on cemetery traffic would increase. As a result, finding a suitable short-term and long-term location for the relocation of these functions is an important priority.
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Given present-day use conditions, grounds maintenance contractors will require a minimum of 1.5 to 2 acres.
Planning Options Evaluated:
ANC explored four potential COAs to address the relocation of the grounds maintenance contractor area from the Millennium Project site: 1. COA# 1 - Short-term, use land to be vacated by the Arlington County Interceptor project contractor in Spring 2013 in Section 58. 2. COA# 2 - Interim-term, use land next to the Service Complex currently occupied by the Sheridan and Ord-Weitzel Gate repair contractor for a temporary or permanent grounds maintenance contractor area. 3. COA# 3 - Interim-term, use land bounded by Columbia Pike, Joyce Street, and the southbound ramp to I-395 for a temporary or permanent grounds maintenance contractor area. 4. COA# 4 - Long-term, develop a consolidated permanent grounds maintenance contractor area and spoils area south of, and contiguous to, the existing Service Complex.
Considerations: 1. COA# 1 is viable in the short-term and has been executed. It uses land not currently used for interment. However, this option uses land that is needed for in-ground interment in the future and is not a permanent solution. 2. COA# 2 may not be viable due to timing issues as the land may not be available when the ultimate relocation of the grounds maintenance area is required. COA# 2 also is a site that is slightly less than 1.5 acres and the size and triangular shape of the site is not ideal to accommodate all the requirements of grounds maintenance contractors. This site could also be needed to connect Eisenhower Drive with Southgate Road should Southgate right-of- way become part of the cemetery in the future. 3. COA# 3 is a viable option but would require some coordination of access to the cemetery since it is presently an “off-cemetery” site. This site would remain an off-site location until such time as Columbia Pike is realigned by Arlington County. There are some concerns regarding visual screening and appearance that would need to be addressed if this area were to be used for maintenance operations. 4. COA# 4 represents a reasonable long-term option if this land is not required for interment purposes. Use of this area for maintenance operations would provide operational connectivity with the Service Complex and represents a logical use of the land south of the
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Service Complex if this land becomes available to ANC in the future. However, this option is years away, and will require significant intergovernmental coordination and collaboration before such land might become available.
3.3.2 Interment Spoils Area Surplus soil (commonly known as “spoils”) from the excavation for in-ground interments and inurnments is created during cemetery operations. These spoils need to be either hauled away immediately or stored until they can be hauled away or re-used elsewhere in the cemetery. Presently, spoils are processed and stored in Section 61.
There are benefits in maintaining the spoils site in Section 61 as long as possible. This location is close to the largest area of active in- ground interment sections. Currently, all of Section 61 is used for spoils storage and was recently used for staging operations by the contractor for the Arlington County Interceptor project. However, only two acres, or approximately half of Section 61 is required for on- going spoils operations. The contractor for the Arlington County Interceptor project occupied the other half of Section 61 and vacated the site in 2013.
ANC will need a spoils area as long as the cemetery is performing traditional in-ground interments and inurnments. Traditional in- ground interment methods will be used in the existing active interment sections of ANC. As the majority of the sections in the expansion project areas (the Millennium Project site and the Southern Expansion site) are expected to use pre-set in-ground interment vaults, the amount of land required for spoils will be reduced over time. Pre-set in-ground interment vaults require only the top 18 inches of soil to be excavated from atop the interment site and this soil is replaced after the interment. Traditional interments require excavating a deep cavity for the placement of an interment vault at the time of interment and result in a large amount of surplus soils displaced by the volume of the interment vault. These soils must be removed from the interment site.
Planning Options Evaluated:
ANC explored four potential COAs to address the requirements of the spoils area: 1. COA# 1 - Short-term, keep the spoils area in a reduced operating footprint in Section 61 until Section 61 is needed for in-ground interment. 2. COA# 2 - Interim-term, use land adjacent to the Service Complex currently occupied by the Sheridan and Ord-Weitzel Gate repair contractor for a temporary or permanent spoils area.
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3. COA# 3 - Interim-term, use land bounded by Columbia Pike, Joyce Street, and the southbound ramp to I-395 for a temporary or permanent spoils area. 4. COA# 4 - Long-term, if a spoils area is still required, develop a consolidated permanent grounds maintenance area and spoils area south of, and contiguous to, the existing Service Complex.
Considerations: 1. COA# 1 represents a logical short-term solution since the site is centrally located to active interment areas. This option, however, cannot serve as a permanent solution. There is some concern about noise and dust impacts on committal services, but this potential conflict can be addressed through coordinated scheduling of committal services and cemetery operations in the spoils area. 2. COA# 2 is a site that is slightly less than 1.5 acres and the size and triangular shape of the site is not ideal to accommodate all the requirements related to spoils handling and storage. This site could also be needed to connect Eisenhower Drive with Southgate Road should Southgate right-of-way become part of the cemetery in the future. 2. COA# 3 is a viable option but would require some coordination of access to the cemetery since this location would be an off-site location. This site would remain an off-site location until such time as Columbia Pike is realigned by Arlington County. Concerns regarding visual screening and appearance would need to be addressed with this option given the high visibility of the site. There may be an additional operational requirement to clean debris from public roadways along the route between the site entrance and access point to the cemetery. 3. COA# 4 represents a reasonable long-term option as it would provide operational connectivity with the Service Complex and represents a logical use of the land south of the Service Complex if this land becomes available to ANC in the future and is not needed for interment purposes. However, this option is years away and is contingent on significant intergovernmental coordination, collaboration and land transfer actions before such land might become available.
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3.4 ACCOMMODATIONS FOR FAMILIES AND VETERANS
Every day ANC welcomes dozens of families and veterans attending Accommodations for families and their loved ones’ committal services. Chaplains from the military veterans at ANC are addressed as services are critical to support families and veterans but current part of the RPMP to fulfill the facilities are not adequate to support personnel and mission following RPMP goals: requirements. Key RPMP requirements are: RPMP Goal #2: “Integrate Core 1. Families and Veterans - Provide improved facilities to support Mission Requirements -Facilitate and support cemetery mission and families and veterans attending committal services; operations;”
2. Chaplains - Provide improved facilities to enable the Chaplains to RPMP Goal #3: “Enhance better complete their mission in support of families and veterans Experiences - Enhance the learning attending committal services; and and visiting experience for family 3. Procession Queuing - Provide a committal service procession members and general visitors;” and queuing area. RPMP Goal #5: “Minimize Logistical and Circulation As an open cemetery, the core mission requirements of ANC include Conflicts - Minimize conflicts the need to accommodate families and veterans attending committal between key users and organize services and provide chaplaincy services to those attending committal traffic flows for pedestrians and services. The Administration Building is currently undersized to meet vehicles to reduce conflicts.” ANC’s requirements in support of its most important mission, Honor the Fallen. Key shortcomings include the following: 1. Family waiting room space is limited and often inadequate, particularly for large committal services; 2. The Chaplains lack adequate space for counseling with family members and preparing for committal services; 3. There is limited parking at the Administration Building; and 4. There is significant vehicular congestion in the parking lot and nearby roadways resulting from families queuing for committal service processions.
ANC considered a number of potential COAs as part of the RPMP to address these functional shortfalls. The following pages discuss requirements for this functional area.
3.4.1 Committal Service Support Functions within the Administration Building The Administration Building was designed and constructed in the mid- 1970s for the purposes of housing both administration functions of the cemetery and to support families and veterans attending committal services. The building is undersized to meet all the functions currently housed in this location. Space requirements for cemetery administration have grown as the ANC organization has been fully staffed to meet its newly validated manpower study completed by the U.S. Army Manpower Analysis Agency. Remaining space for
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The Administration Building (shown to the right) is undersized to meet current mission requirements. Relocating administration staff not directly working with committal services out of the building and reusing space to expand accommodations for families, chaplains and veterans is a key RPMP recommendation.
families and veterans attending committal services and for the Chaplains’ Office in the Administration Building is insufficient and inadequate for current functions and mission requirements. The building is, however, located near current active first interment areas and is centrally located between what will become the major first interment areas in the future, the Millennium Project site and the Southern Expansion site. (See Figure 3.2)
Planning Options Evaluated:
ANC examined three potential COAs for consideration as part of the RPMP. These are: 1. COA# 1, Expand the Building - Expand the footprint of the building and/or build a new building to the west of the existing structure. 2. COA# 2, Relocate the Function - Relocate the family services function to a completely new location at the Southern Expansion site when the Southern Expansion site is the only active first interment area in the cemetery. 3. COA# 3, Repurpose the Building - Move general administration functions and personnel out of the Administration Building and repurpose the building to better support families, veterans and the Chaplains.
Considerations: 1. COA# 1 - While there is land available to expand the building or build a new building, there is not sufficient room to expand available parking without taking land that could be used for interments or needed to provide a funeral procession queuing area. There are also substantial costs with this COA.
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2. COA# 2 - A major concern of this COA is the current building is Figure 3.2 above illustrates the centrally located within the cemetery and is well-located given the location of the family services functions three primary interment areas that will be active in the short– and (housed in the current Administration mid-term future. There are also substantial costs associated with Building) are centrally located in this COA. relationship to active in-ground and niche interment areas as well as future 3. COA# 3 - Moving administration staff out of the building would interment areas at the Millennium allow ample space to repurpose the building to better support Project site and the Southern families, veterans and the Chaplains. This action is a viable short– and medium–term option. Ultimately, family services functions could be relocated in the long-term once the Southern Expansion site is the only active first interment area. The costs associated with this COA are significantly less than the other two COAs.
A number of facility program elements are recommended to address functional requirements associated with COA# 3. These are: 1. Family Waiting Rooms - Currently, two family waiting rooms are located on the main level of the building and two family waiting rooms are located on the lower level. All are in need of refurnishing as the décor is worn, dated and not representative of the expectations of those attending services at ANC. If administration staff not directly working with committal services move out of the building, the offices could be reconfigured and converted into family rooms. This could better meet the
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requirement for improved family waiting rooms. This would place all family waiting rooms on the main level of the building, providing much easier access for those less mobile (whether baby strollers, wheelchairs or canes), as well as daylight, windows, and views to the cemetery from all family waiting rooms. 2. Chaplain/Family Meeting Rooms - The current family rooms on the lower level could be repurposed as locations for personal consultation or meetings between the Chaplains and immediate members of the family while the entire committal service party is waiting upstairs in the main family waiting rooms. Currently, there is no space for meetings between Chaplains and family members in the Chaplains’ offices. 3. Meditation Room—ANC currently lacks a non-denominational meditation/quiet contemplation area for persons attending committal services who seek a time of solace away from the entire committal service party in advance of a committal service. A small meditation room could be provided on the main level of the building once administration staff not directly working with committal services have moved out of the building. 4. Chaplains’ Office - Changing facilities for chaplains are currently lacking, while the number and size of offices are deficient. Areas for dressing and uniform pressing are missing in the building and would better serve the Chaplains. The lower level of the building could be configured to accommodate this requirement if administration staff not directly working with committal services move from the building.
3.4.2 Committal Service Procession Queuing ANC lacks sufficient space for funeral coaches and families to queue in their private vehicles for committal service processions, especially for large committal services. Multiple committal service processions queue in close proximity several times daily.
Currently, committal service participants are directed to queue their vehicles along existing roadways in vicinity of the Administration Building. Typical queuing areas include King Drive and Halsey Drive. Eisenhower Drive and Memorial Avenue are also used for larger committal service processions. The lack of a dedicated committal service procession queuing area often creates additional traffic congestion in an area where traffic congestion is already a pressing problem. Waiting vehicle queues can also extend into the parking lot driveway lanes for larger committal services, blocking other vehicles attempting to exit the parking lot to attend other committal services.
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Figure 3.3 above shows the concept Planning Options Evaluated: of creating a new committal service procession queuing area in the To address this deficiency, ANC explored alternative COAs to current parking lot to better create a dedicated queuing area where committal service accommodate staging of vehicles processions could be organized without impacting traffic on and relieving a major congestion existing roadways: point in front of the Administration Building. General parking functions 1. COA# 1 - King Drive: Locate a queuing area immediately to are relocated to an area east of west of the Administration Building to the north of King Drive. Halsey Drive and north of King 2. COA# 2 - Halsey Drive: Create a facility east of Halsey Drive. Drive. 3. COA# 3 - Current Parking Lot: Redevelop the existing parking lot south of King Drive into a committal service queuing area and relocate parking functions to north of King Drive and east of Halsey Drive. None of the COAs would use land planned for interment or other functions.
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Considerations: COA#3 (see Figure 3.3) offers the following advantages: 1. Circulation Improvements - Existing roadways, such as Eisenhower Drive, Leahy Drive, Halsey Drive, and King Drive, can be used to provide an orderly circulation pattern and taffic conflicts and congestion in vicinity of the Administration Building would be reduced; 2. Larger Committal Services Accommodated - Accommodates more vehicles in an orderly fashion reducing stress for those attending services, a particularly important consideration for larger committal services; and
ANC also examined opportunities to modify the circulation pattern in front of the Administration Building. Currently, it is not clear that traffic coming down King Drive from Eisenhower Drive should enter the roundabout in front of the building in a counter clockwise direction. This situation creates confusion and traffic conflicts between vehicles. An option to better channel traffic, shown in Figure 3.3, would improve the situation and direct traffic into the normal counter clockwise circulation pattern customary for roundabouts. The RPMP contains recommendations to address current deficiencies in staff Another added benefit of the committal service procession queuing accommodations related to the area is it would allow families the option to park their vehicles in their following RPMP goals: place in line instead of parking in the parking lot and then moving RPMP Goal #2: “Address Core their vehicles into the committal procession queue when the service is Mission Requirements - about to begin. This would help alleviate congestion and stress for Facilitate and support cemetery families attending committal services. mission and operations,” is a key goal addressed by this section of the RPMP; and 3.5 STAFF ACCOMMODATIONS RPMP Goal #3:“Provide a Safe and Accessible Environment - ANC examined space and location requirements for administration Provide for a safe, secure and staff as part of the RPMP. Key requirements are: accessible environment for staff, 1. Adequate Space - ANC currently provides only 50% of the space family members and general required for administration staff based on authorized personnel visitors.” levels, enduring mission requirements and standards for federal workers in the National Capital Region; and 2. Quality of Environment - The quality of the physical work environment is deficient due to crowding and substandard furnishings.
3.5.1 New Administration/HQ Building Administration staff for ANC are located on the main level and basement levels of the Administration Building, the Welcome Center
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and in Building 123 at the Service Complex. Current occupied areas Figure 3.4 above shows four are significantly undersized and the majority of staff is crowded in options considered for the location working conditions that do not meet minimum standards for federal agency workers in the National Capital Region. ANC evaluated authorized mission staffing levels and corresponding space allocation standards per federal guidelines and found a shortfall of at least 20,000 square feet. The total recommended space for the authorized ANC program staff of 213 is approximately 43,000 square feet.
Planning Options Evaluated:
ANC considered four main COAs shown in Figure 3.4 to address space requirements for ANC staff. These are: 1. COA#1 - Use available space elsewhere at ANC to relieve crowding in the Administration Building. 2. COA# 2 - Construct a new administration facility adjacent to and west of the current Administration Building. 3. COA# 3 - Construct a new administration facility adjacent to Building 123 in the Service Complex. 4. COA# 4 - Construct a new administration facility on the parcel of land south of Columbia Pike that is part of the Southern Expansion site.
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Considerations: 1. COA#1 is the present course of action being undertaken to address existing space deficiencies in the short-term. The basement of the Welcome Center is being remodeled in 2014 to accommodate a majority of administration staff currently located in the Administration Building. These actions will free up space in the Administration Building to support better accommodation of the needs of families and Chaplains as discussed in the previous section. This COA will not solve the current parking deficiency or traffic congestion in the area, however. 2. COA# 2 is a potential interim-term course of action and has an The photo above shows how screening advantage over other new building options given the availability of techniques such as berms, tree land and utilities adjacent to the Administration Building. The COA plantings, building massing, and is not dependent on the outcome of discussions with Arlington building materials can be used to County regarding expressed interest in land south of Columbia Pike, provide compatibility between the as is COA# 4. It is also not dependent on the ultimate realignment Service Complex buildings and adjoining interment areas. Similar of Columbia Pike by Arlington County and the transfer of land to techniques could be used if a new ANC, as is COA# 3. COA#2 could require reconfiguration of the Administration building were existing tour vehicle driveway circle and loading area located on constructed near the Service Complex. lands under the jurisdiction of NPS. This COA would not solve the current parking deficiency or traffic congestion in the area. 3. COA# 3, given its proximity to, and visibility from the cemetery, requires a suitable site large enough for construction of a single- story building. One option would be to demolish the older garages located to the west of Building 123. Additional land for building and parking areas would be required, presumably from the realignment of Columbia Pike as proposed by Arlington County. One advantage of the COA is that mission execution efficiencies could be improved since administration staff would be adjacent to cemetery operations staff. One disadvantage of the COA is it could require the use of land for building and parking areas that could otherwise be used for interment purposes. 4. COA# 4 features land that is available for development south of Columbia Pike with room for a more efficient multi-story structure and parking for staff and visitors. This option assumes ANC retains control of land south of Columbia Pike for use for cemetery purposes although Arlington County has expressed an interest in the transfer of land south of Columbia Pike to Arlington County. Depending on the final design of the building, COA#4 could allow for the creation of a visual and noise buffer between I-395 and the cemetery grounds on the north side of Columbia Pike. Under this COA, staff would be within walking distance to new interment areas at the FOB#2 site and cemetery operations staff located in Building 123 in the Service Complex.
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The Tomb of the Unknowns is one of ISITOR XPERIENCE 3.6 V E the many important visitor The RPMP identified projects to improve the cemetery’s ability to offer destinations that represent the a place where the nation can Honor, Remember, and Explore the mission of ANC. service and sacrifice of our nation’s veterans. As such, the RPMP identifies the following functions that would enhance the visitors’ experiences: 1. Create an Interpretive Center - Provide an interpretive center and museum experience for visitors to ANC, worthy of the cemetery’s history and significance; 2. Facilities for Tour Groups - Provide facilities that are adequate for the large daily influx of organized tour groups arriving by motor coach; 3. Information Stations - In each expansion area, provide a location for information kiosks, rest, and shade to encourage and support visitation and exploration of the cemetery on foot, while ensuring basic health and safety needs are met; 4. Congestion Improvements - Explore options to address vehicular congestion along Memorial Avenue and reduce pedestrian and
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vehicular conflicts at key locations, such as Eisenhower Drive in vicinity of the Welcome Center and the Women in Military Service for America Memorial.
Visitor accommodations are 3.6.1 Visitor Facilities addressed as part of the RPMP to fulfill the following RPMP goals: The Welcome Center is typically the first building visited by those RPMP Goal #3: “Provide a Safe arriving at ANC. The building was intended to function as a visitor and Accessible Environment - orientation facility but it is undersized for the number of visitors Provide for a safe, secure and typically using the building. The building is often overwhelmed accessible environment for staff, with large crowds from multiple tour buses and at times the building family members and general seems more like a way-station than an orientation and beginning visitors;” point for persons visiting a National shrine. Currently, a majority of RPMP Goal #4: “Enhance the building square footage is devoted to restrooms and large group Experiences - Enhance the learning assembly and gathering areas. With the help of the U.S. Army and visiting experience for family Center for Military History, in January 2013, ANC opened a small members and general visitors;” and but professional exhibit about the history and mission of the RPMP Goal #5: “Minimize cemetery. However, this information represents a very small Logistical and Circulation portion of the ANC story. More room is needed to tell a more Conflicts - Minimize conflicts complete story of the cemetery and its importance in American between key users and organize history. traffic flows for pedestrians and vehicles to reduce conflicts.” In the previous master plan, the basement space of Welcome Center was envisioned as a location for an interpretive center, archival storage, and visitor orientation movie.1 This vision was not realized and is not an option at this time. The basement space is currently used and needed to accommodate administration staff due to the significant lack of space in the adjacent Administration Building. Instead, the RPMP focused on developing some alternatives to accommodate underlying programming and functional challenges currently faced by the Welcome Center.
Planning Options Evaluated:
ANC developed three main options to improve the visitor experience: 1. COA# 1 - Create a new Transportation Center to relieve crowding in the Welcome Center and better serve organized tours. This COA proposes establishing a new facility in the tour bus parking area, rather than having this function be located in the Welcome Center immediately beside the door to enter ANC’s hallowed grounds. (See Figure 3.5) This new facility could include restrooms, cemetery tour vehicle ticket sales and provide marshaling and holding areas for large tour groups.
1U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Baltimore District and Rhodeside and Harwell Incorporated. (1998). Arlington National Cemetery Master Plan. p.83.
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Proposed improvements to direct visitors to the main entrance of the repurposed Figure 3.5: Conceptual plan drawing Memorial Avenue Welcome Center. of a Transportation Center that could accommodate tour buses and major tour groups by providing restrooms, ticketing, and gathering areas for large group tour visitors and relieve some of the overcrowding in the Welcome Welcome Center. Center
Administration/ Building
New Transportation Center concept in the tour bus parking area for tour bus visitors to include restrooms, tour vehicle ticketing, and covered waiting areas to accommodate multiple tour groups.
h ort N RPMP Concept Drawing Only
2. COA# 2 - Build an addition to the Welcome Center or a new facility next to the Administration Building to serve as a museum/ interpretive center, and as a staging area for large tour groups. 3. COA# 3 - Build a new Interpretive Center on the Navy Annex site, potentially co-located with proposed interpretive centers for the Freedman’s Village and/or Pentagon Memorial.
Considerations: 1. COA# 1 - Building a new Transportation Center would be a cost efficient way to address most of the current overcrowding problems at the Welcome Center and would offer a significant improvement to the visitor experience for all general visitors to ANC. This action could reduce the amount of space devoted to
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restroom facilities in the Welcome Center. It could also result in fewer people in the facility at the same time which could free up floor space for more information panels about the cemetery. 2. COA# 2 could provide a key needed facility to serve as a staging area for large tour groups similar to the Transportation Center in COA#1. The new building could be purpose-built to house an interpretive center and orientation film. This option would require coordination with the National Park Service (NPS) as they have jurisdiction over the land to the west of the current Welcome Center. 3. COA# 3 is viable as a longer-term option and should be considered as part of the design study for the Southern Expansion site. The COA would require construction of a new building and parking area but could be undertaken in tandem with the proposed Pentagon Memorial Interpretive Center and the proposed Freedman’s Village Museum. As shown in Figure
The main (northern) entrance to the existing Welcome Center (top) is underutilized since to the majority of visitors use the eastern entrance (bottom) closest to the parking garage and tour bus drop off area. The RPMP contemplates converting the eastern entrance into an egress only exit and to use landscape and walkway improvements to direct visitors to the main entrance on the buildings north-facing side. This action would allow visitors to experience a more ceremonial entry to the facility. This could also allow for the introduction of more information panels in the eastern hallway space. This action would be supported by the construction of the Transportation Center as proposed in COA# 1 since the majority of visitors arriving by tour bus and auto would have more readily accessible restroom facilities in the Transportation Center and the need to access the Welcome Center for this purpose would be significantly reduced.
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3.6, locating an Interpretive Center at the Southern Expansion site Figure 3.6 above illustrates potential will put visitors some distance from major cemetery destinations locations considered for an currently reached on-foot or via the tour vehicle. Some form of bus Interpretive Center as part of the RPMP. connection and/or extension of the tour vehicle route should be considered.
3.6.2 Information Stations ANC is deploying technology such as mobile phone applications and freestanding information centers to enhance the visitor experience in the cemetery and encourage visitors to explore and learn more about the cemetery. Part of this program includes the installation of new electronic information stations in select locations across the cemetery, providing needed orientation and resting points to enhance the visitor experience at ANC.
3.6.3 Circulation Improvements ANC identified a number of opportunities to improve circulation and reduce conflict points between vehicles and pedestrians. These include: 1. Conflicts between pedestrians crossing Eisenhower Drive at Roosevelt Drive, vehicular traffic from committal service processions, and tour vehicles using Eisenhower Drive; 2. Traffic congestion along Memorial Avenue at the Welcome Center/ parking garage entrance and southbound ramp to VA-27/I-395; and
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3. Provide connections between the existing cemetery and cemetery expansion areas located at the Southern Expansion site.
Further study and collaboration between ANC and other governmental agencies will be needed to address the requirements listed above, as solutions to these issues will need to occur on lands outside of the jurisdictional boundaries of ANC. In the case of improvements to Memorial Avenue and at Eisenhower Drive/ Roosevelt Drive, collaboration with the NPS will be essential to find comprehensive solutions to address congestion concerns. Current deficiencies impact the visitor experience for persons visiting both ANC and NPS destinations and solutions may include the need to make changes to facilities on lands that fall under both ANC and NPS jurisdictions.
Continued discussions and joint studies between ANC and Arlington County will be necessary to achieve the objective of connecting the existing cemetery to future interment sites at the Southern Expansion site. The primary need is to address options for Southgate Road, the current barrier between the existing cemetery and the planned principal interment area at the Southern Expansion site. Additional discussions between ANC and Arlington County are also needed if Arlington County wishes to realign Columbia Pike to accommodate the proposed transit project in a manner that does not impact cemetery operations and interment requirements.
3.7 NEW INTERMENT AREA DEVELOPMENT ANC examined programming options for new interment areas, namely the Southern Expansion site, as part of the RPMP. Development of the Millennium Project site was introduced and discussed as part of the previous master plan2. The Millennium Project began construction in 2014 will include over 27,000 first interment spaces.3
Planning Options Evaluated:
For developing the Southern Expansion site design, ANC’s initial planning requirements include: 1. Interment Space - The general target for interment capacity is at least 60,000 spaces;
2U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Baltimore District and Rhodeside and Harwell Incorporated. (1998). Arlington National Cemetery Master Plan. p.56. 3 U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Norfolk District. (April 2013). 95% Design Documents, Millennium Project.
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2. Cemetery Grounds Maintenance Yard - A permanent location for the cemetery grounds maintenance yard, returning Section 58, the current interim location, to interment space; New interment area development 3. Spoils Area - A permanent location for a spoils area, returning recommendations have been created Section 61 to interment space; and with consideration given to the following RPMP goals: 4. Possible New Administration/HQ Building - A long-term action Goal #1: “Cultivate Key item for consideration if mission growth and change requires Attributes - Preserve the serenity, additional space and a site can be planned as part of the Southern beauty, iconic image, and Expansion design phase. tranquility in the existing cemetery and promote these qualities in new Considerations: development areas;”
As part of the RPMP, ANC explored potential development options at Goal #2: “Integrate Core Mission the Southern Expansion site based on three scenarios: Requirements - Facilitate and support cemetery mission and 1. Baseline Scenario (See Figure 3.7) - All roadways and parcels at operations;” the Southern Expansion site remain as they are today. Site 9402, Goal #5: “Minimize Logistical the former FOB#2 office complex site, would be used for and Circulation Conflicts - interment spaces. Parcels south of Columbia Pike, Sites 9401 and Minimize conflicts between key 8027, would be planned for other cemetery uses such as a new users and organize traffic flows for Administration Building, spoils area, and grounds maintenance pedestrians and vehicles to reduce contractor areas; conflicts;” 2. Partial Development Scenario (See Figure 3.8) - Southgate Road Goal #6: “Provide New Interment right-of-way would be acquired by ANC to create a contiguous Capacity - Extend the active life of site between the existing cemetery to the north, and the former the cemetery by developing new FOB#2 office complex site to the south. Utilities would be interment areas that complement the cemetery’s image and majestic consolidated and useable land would be dedicated to interment character;” and spaces. Patton Drive and Southgate Road could also be consolidated to reduce redundancy and provide additional Goal #7: “Use Resources Wisely - interment space in the existing Patton Drive alignment. The two Employ sustainability initiatives and design approaches throughout other parcels of land south of Columbia Pike would be used as in all cemetery activities achieving a the Baseline Scenario. One alternative presented in the EA for the net zero impact when possible.” Partial Development Scenario also includes a 55 foot easement at the western edge of the FOB#2 site that would be made available to Arlington County to construct a new access road connecting Southgate Road to Columbia Pike; and 3. Full Development Scenario (See Figure 3.9) - This scenario assumes Columbia Pike has been realigned by Arlington County per proposals contained in the Arlington County Plan for Columbia Pike. Southgate Road right-of-way would be acquired by ANC. ANC would have the potential to gain surplus rights-of- way from Columbia Pike, VA Highway 27 ramps, and easements for Joyce Street if these were to be reconfigured under concepts under discussion with Arlington County and the Virginia Department of Transportation. The resulting potential land area
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for ANC would form one large contiguous parcel of land for interment and cemetery uses north of a realigned Columbia Pike. Parcels south of Columbia Pike would be planned for other cemetery uses such as a new Administration Building, spoils area and grounds maintenance contractor areas similar to the Baseline Scenario; and/or portions may be part of a land exchange action with Arlington County similar to the Partial Development Scenario. Similar to the Partial Development Scenario, the EA presents an alternative that includes the option of a 55 foot easement at the western edge of the FOB#2 site that could be made available to Arlington County to construct a new access road connecting Southgate Road to Columbia Pike similar to the Partial Development Scenario. Given no final alignment determinations have been made at this time, the EA illustrates a broad envelop indicated a broad range of Columbia Pike alignment alternatives and VA-27 interchange reconfigurations that are currently under consideration.
In the short-term period, the RPMP recommends advancing the design and development of the former FOB#2 office complex site for interment purposes. This land can be developed independent of the outcome of discussions related to Southgate Road, Columbia Pike and Figure 3.7 below illustrates the the VA Highway 27 ramp realignment proposals. The RPMP also parcels available to ANC as part of recommends continued discussions with area stakeholders to transfer of land from the Southern determine an optimal solution to accommodate the interests of the Expansion site. This is the Baseline various parties. Scenario.
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Figure 3.8 above illustrates the parcels available to ANC as part of transfer of land from the Southern Expansion site as shown in the Baseline Scenario with the addition of the former Southgate Road right-of-way. This is the Partial Development Scenario. A 55 foot easement for a new Southgate Road connection to Columbia Pike is one of the alternatives for this option.
Figure 3.9 above illustrates the potential parcels available to ANC including the addition of the former Southgate Road right-of- way and former Columbia Pike and Joyce Street rights-of-ways and easements. This is the Full Development Scenario. A 55 foot easement for a new Southgate Road connection to Columbia Pike is one of the alternatives for this option. A number of alignment alternatives for Columbia Pike and reconfiguration of the VA-27 interchange ramps are under consideration and are subject to further discussion and agreement by all interested parties.
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The illustration to the left is an artist’s rendering of an early concept for possible interment at the Southern Expansion site. The existing grade change at the northern edge of the former FOB#2 office complex site creates an opportunity to consider terraced levels that could provide places for niches and potentially above-ground casketed remains.
4. FUTURE DEVELOPMENT PLAN
4.1 OVERVIEW This chapter of the RPMP presents a 25 year future development action plan for ANC. Appendix A presents a future development action plan for SAHNC. The future development action plan is composed of specific projects that have been phased in five year increments from 2013 through 2037. Given the need for action on many priorities, the RPMP recommends that ANC should program funds to complete these projects within the first 15 years of the planning period. Outlying years should focus on sustainment activities and planning for the anticipated end of ANC as an open cemetery once there is no longer space for interment of eligible veterans.
Plate 4.1 illustrates major initiatives contained in the RPMP. Plate 4.2 depicts the recommended timeline and phasing for future interment operations and major construction projects. The following components guided the creation of the future development plan: 1. ANC mission requirements as documented in Chapter 1; 2. RPMP goals developed as documented in Chapter 1; 3. RPMP requirements informed by existing conditions and planning implications as documented in Chapter 2; and 4. Planning options considered and evaluated to address RPMP requirements according to five key functional areas as documented in Chapter 3.
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4.2 MAJOR INITIATIVES The following section presents major RPMP initiatives for ANC. Major initiatives are described for each of the five key functional ANC created the following RPMP areas used in the discussion of planning options and COAs presented goals to guide development of major in Chapter 3. initiatives:
Goal #1: “Cultivate Key 4.2.1 Cemetery Operations, Grounds Maintenance and Interment Attributes - Preserve the serenity, Spoils beauty, iconic image, and tranquility in the existing cemetery For the short-term (to 2017), the cemetery grounds maintenance area and promote these qualities in new has been relocated to Section 58. The spoils area can remain in development areas;” Section 61. To minimize the potential for disruption of interments, access to the Sections will be limited. An ultimate location for the Goal #2: “Integrate Core Mission cemetery grounds maintenance contractor area and spoils area will be Requirements - Facilitate and support cemetery mission and addressed in the final planning and design for the Southern Expansion operations;” site.
Goal #3: “Provide a Safe and 4.2.2 Accommodations for Families and Veterans Accessible Environment - Provide for a safe, secure and accessible Administration staff not directly working with committal services environment for staff, family currently located in the Administration Building will be relocated to members and general visitors;” the Welcome Center basement. The Administration Building shall be Goal #4: “Enhance Experiences - repurposed to provide improved capabilities to support families, Enhance the learning and visiting veterans and Chaplains. Improvements to the building could include: experience for family members and relocation and remodeling of family waiting rooms, creation of general visitors;” meeting rooms for Chaplains and families, creation of a quiet Goal #5: “Minimize Logistical meditation/contemplation room, and creation of Chaplains’ offices and Circulation Conflicts - and changing rooms. Minimize conflicts between key users and organize traffic flows for To help organize committal procession traffic in the short-term, signs pedestrians and vehicles to reduce shall be posted to route cars to form a counter-clockwise circulation conflicts;” pattern using Eisenhower, Leahy, Halsey, and King Drives. Vehicles Goal #6: “Provide New Interment will use King, Halsey and Leahy Drives for queuing as needed. In the Capacity - Extend the active life of near-term horizon (2015-2016), ANC will redevelop the existing the cemetery by developing new parking lot into a dedicated committal service procession queuing interment areas that complement area and will relocate parking function to the east of Halsey Drive and the cemetery’s image and majestic to the north of King Drive. (See Figure 4.1) character;” and 4.2.3 Staff Accommodations Goal #7: “Use Resources Wisely - Employ sustainability initiatives In the short– and interim-term, ANC will address the space shortfall and design approaches throughout for administration staff by renovating the basement of Welcome all cemetery activities achieving a Center and relocating staff to this new space. The planning and net zero impact when possible.” design for the Southern Expansion site will identify sites for the potential location of possible new Administration/HQ building, should one become necessary in the long-term due to mission growth and change.
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4.2.4 Visitor Experience Figure 4.1 above shows the concept of creating a new committal service In the short-term, the focus for improving visitors’ experience will be procession queuing area in the on continued deployment of free-standing computerized information current parking lot to better stations in key locations throughout the cemetery. accommodate staging of vehicles and relieving a major congestion In the interim-term, ANC will explore the feasibility for the point in front of the Administration construction of a new Transportation Center to accommodate the large Building. General parking functions numbers of organized tours and tour buses that frequent the cemetery are relocated to an area east of Halsey Drive and north of King on a daily basis. (See Figure 4.2) This facility would include Drive. restrooms and tour vehicle ticketing. It would have weather-protected areas for tour marshaling, waiting and bus unloading and loading. In addition to improving the visitor experience for those arriving by organized tour group, the facility would reduce overcrowding in the Welcome Center and allow the building to function better as a visitor orientation facility as it was originally intended.
In the long-term, ANC will consider the construction of an Interpretive Center at the Southern Expansion site. The facility could
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Proposed improvements to direct visitors to the main entrance of the Welcome Memorial Avenue Center. Figure 4.2: Conceptual plan drawing of a Transportation Center that could accommodate tour buses and major tour groups by providing restrooms, ticketing, and gathering areas for large group tour visitors and relieve Welcome some of the overcrowding in the Center Welcome Center.
Administration/ Building
New Transportation Center concept in the tour bus parking area for tour bus visitors to include restrooms, tour vehicle ticketing, and covered waiting areas to accommodate multiple tour groups.
h ort N RPMP Concept Drawing Only
be developed in cooperation with other proposed interpretive centers for the Pentagon Memorial and Freedman’s Village. Possible locations for the Interpretive Center will be addressed in the final planning and design for the Southern Expansion site.
Joint studies are needed between ANC and NPS to address vehicular and pedestrian conflicts and congestion along Memorial Avenue and in vicinity of Eisenhower Drive and Roosevelt Drive. Continued discussions between ANC and Arlington County are needed to address vehicular and pedestrian circulation between the existing cemetery grounds and future development in the Southern Expansion site.
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Figure 4.3: Concept Plan for the The introduction of a new cemetery circulator bus concept is also Millennium Project site (95% Design planned given ANC’s acquisition of concession authority. The Submission) circulator bus could provide access for families and visitors to all sections and key destinations within the cemetery.
4.2.5 New Interment Area Development Development of the Millennium Project site and the Southern Expansion site for interment uses will extend the active life of ANC beyond the planning horizon for the RPMP. The Millennium Project began construction in 2013 and will add an estimated capacity of over 27,000 first interment spaces. (See Figure 4.3) The general target for first interment spaces at the Southern Expansion site is at least 60,000 spaces.
The development plan for the Southern Expansion site will be the subject of future planning and design studies. The RPMP guidance is for the property to be developed in a manner that represents the best use of the land with consideration of mission requirements and environmental sustainability. It is expected that development of the property will occur in a phased manner in response to cemetery needs and pending the outcome of on-going discussions between ANC, Arlington County, and the Virginia Department of Transportation regarding potential realignments of roadways, abandonment of surplus road rights-of-way in the area and land parcel consolidation.
The RPMP considered contingent development COAs for the Southern Expansion site based on three scenarios (Baseline, Partial Development and Full Development) as shown in Figures 4.4 through 4.5. Development programming for the Southern Expansion site could include: interment spaces, permanent locations for a cemetery grounds maintenance contractor yards and spoils area and possible
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Figure 4.4 above illustrates the parcels available to ANC as part of transfer of land associated with the Southern Expansion site and represents the Baseline Scenario.
Figure 4.5 above illustrates the parcels available to ANC as part of transfer of land associated with the Southern Expansion site as shown in the Baseline Scenario with the addition of the former Southgate Road right-of-way. This is the Partial Development Scenario. A 55 foot easement for a new Southgate Road connection to Columbia Pike is one of the alternatives for this option.
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Figure 4.6 above illustrates the potential parcels available to ANC including the addition of the former Southgate Road right-of- way and former Columbia Pike and Joyce Street rights-of-ways and easements. This is the Full Development Scenario. A 55 foot easement for a new Southgate Road connection to Columbia Pike is one of the alternatives for this option. A number of alignment alternatives for Columbia Pike and reconfiguration of the VA-27 interchange ramps are under consideration and are subject to further discussion and agreement by all interested parties. locations for a new Administration/HQ Building and an Interpretive Center. RPMP guidance is to consider design and development of the former FOB#2 office complex site as a first phase development project as development of the site is not dependent on future road right-of-way acquisition, realignment of roadways or relocation of utilities.
4.3 FUTURE DEVELOPMENT ACTION PLAN The following section presents the RPMP future development action plan for ANC. Action plan items include the major initiatives described in the previous section and smaller capital improvement and real property maintenance projects such as infrastructure improvements and safety projects.
4.3.1 Short Term Actions, to 2017 During the short term horizon the focus of recommendations is on key short term maintenance, security, IT and interment operations projects. In addition, it is expected that significant progress will be made on advancing the two major new interment areas, the
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Millennium Project site and the Southern Expansion site. The Millennium Project began construction in 2013. Preliminary planning and design for the Southern Expansion site began in 2014.
Key action plan items are: 1. Millennium Project - Undertake construction of approximately 27 acres for future interment at the northwest corner of ANC consisting of ANC property as well as property transferred to ANC from NPS and JBM-HH. The project will provide over 27,000 interment spaces. 2. Proposed Committal Service Procession Queuing Concept – Design and construct a dedicated queuing area east of Halsey Drive for queuing of vehicles for committal service processions. (See Figure 4.1) 3. Southern Expansion Site Planning and Design - Prepare planning and design studies for the development of the Southern Expansion site and begin construction of initial development phases. 4. Information Centers Phase I Rollout - Install information center stations for accessing ANC Explorer at select locations across ANC. 5. Infrastructure Repair Projects - Continue ANC’s comprehensive program to address infrastructure and facilities maintenance backlog including: water line replacement, road rebuilding and repaving, survey and modernization of underground utilities, parking garage repairs, general building repairs, accessibility improvements, and stonework/masonry and flagstone repairs. 6. Relocate Administration Staff - Move staff not directly working with committal services from the Administration Building to newly renovated space in the basement of the Welcome Center. 7. Proposed Administration Building Improvements - Repurpose and remodel the Administration Building to improve facilities for families and veterans attending committal services and to support the Chaplains’ Office. 8. Improve Committal Service Queuing Circulation - Install signs to direct traffic in a counter-clockwise manner using Eisenhower, Leahy, Halsey and King Drives to help organize committal processing queuing traffic. 9. ANC Site Elements Improvements - Execute a program of improvements to site elements such as signs, bollards, benches, recycling bins, and flower bins across ANC.
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10. Joint Studies for Circulation Improvements - Inter-agency studies between ANC and NPS to address vehicular and pedestrian circulation conflicts and congestion along Memorial Avenue and in vicinity of Eisenhower Drive and Roosevelt Drive. 11. Electronic Security System (ESS) Project - Provide ANC with an integrated physical security program.
4.3.2 Interim Term Actions, 2018 - 2022 In the interim term, the focus of activity at ANC will be to finalize design and construction of major facility and infrastructure improvements. Key action plan items are: 1. Southern Expansion Site Development - Continue construction of interment spaces as part of the development at the Southern Expansion site. 2. Proposed Transportation Center Concept - Design and construct a new transportation center in the existing tour bus parking area to include restrooms, tour vehicle ticket sales and a covered waiting and bus boarding area. (See Figure 4.2) 3. Relocate Grounds Maintenance and Spoils Areas - Relocate the cemetery contractor grounds maintenance area and spoils areas out of Sections 61 and 58 to a new location at the Southern Expansion site. An interim and/or ultimate location is to be determined during the planning and design of the Southern Expansion site.
4.3.3 Long Term Actions, 2023-2037 Long term action items in the future development plan are focused on sustainment, continued development of the Southern Expansion site and planning for facilities such as an Interpretive Center and a potential Administration/HQ Building. Key activities include: 1. Continued Development of the Southern Expansion Site - Execute final development of remaining lands as required for interment and other cemetery uses including: an ultimate location for cemetery grounds maintenance contractors area and spoils area, and other cemetery support uses as planned. 2. ANC Interpretive Center - Consider construction of an Interpretive Center at the Southern Expansion site as either an independent project or as a joint-use facility, such as with the proposed Pentagon Memorial Interpretive Center and the Freedman’s Village museum.
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2014 Reprint - Page 93 Old Post Chapel Plate 4.1: Interment Operations Memorial Joint Base Chapel Myer-Henderson Hall and Major Construction Joint Base Projects Myer-Henderson Hall I-6 Interment/Inurnment Areas I-1 Continued Inurnment in Niche Wall I-2 Inurnment in Columbarium Lands Under Court #8 NPS Jurisdiction I-3 Interment in Sections 33 and 12 Memorial Amphitheater I-4 Interment in Sections 55, 56, 57, Arlington House The 58, 60, 61 62, and 70 Robert E. Lee Memorial I-5 Inurnment in Columbarium Court #9 Tomb of the JFK Foxcroft Unknowns Grave I-6 Millennium Project Site Site Heights I-7 Southern Expansion Site (including possible land exchanges) I-8 Tomb of Remembrance C-2
Interment Operations Support I-9 Administration Building and WIMSA Welcome Center Improvements I-10 Committal Service Procession Lands Under Queuing Area and Parking NPS Sec. 33 Jurisdiction Air Force Sec. 12 Visitor Experience Memorial I-3 V-1 Proposed Transportation Center Sec. 55 Concept I-10 I-9 I-7 Collaboration with External I-395 Stakeholders Under Discussion C-1 Possible Realignment of C-1 Sec. 56 Service Sec. 61 Sec. 59 V-1 Parking Columbia Pike/VA-27 Ramps Complex Garage Sec. 60 C-2 Possible 55 Foot Easement for Southgate Road Connector I-4 C-3 Proposed 9-11 Memorial Visitor Sec. 70 Education Center C-3 Sec. 62 Sec. 57 Columbarium Court
I-2 CC#8
I-5 CC#9 I-8 I-1
Niche Wall The Pentagon NORTH
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Plate 4.2: Interment Operations and Major Construction Projects Timeline
LEGEND: Key Timeline Activities Planning and Design Phase Construction Phase
Three Year Interment Area Settlement Period Expected Operational Life Sustainment Period
Key Operational Deadlines and Milestone Points1 11. 2016 - Existing niche space reaches capacity 22. 2024 - Columbarium 9 niche space reaches capacity 33. 2025 – Existing in-ground interment space reaches capacity 4. 2035 – Millennium Project 4 in-ground interment space reaches capacity 55. 2037 – Millennium Project niche space reaches capacity 66. 2056 – Southern Expansion site interment space reaches capacity 1Center for Army Analysis. (26 December 2012). ANC Burial Capacity.
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APPENDIX A -U.S. SOLDIERS’ AND AIRMEN’S HOME NATIONAL CEMETERY
1. SCOPE AND MISSION The U.S. Soldiers’ and Airmen’s Home National Cemetery (SAHNC) is one of the nation’s oldest military cemeteries and occupies approximately 16 acres of land adjacent to the Armed Forces Retirement Home in NW Washington, DC. SAHNC conducts on average seven interments per year and provides a place of dignity and honor to lay to rest those who have served our Nation and reside at the Armed Forces Retirement Home. The cemetery is a place of rest for approximately 14,226 individuals, including a large number of Civil War veterans.
The photo above illustrates the classic style of the vehicular entrance gate to Soldiers’ and Airmen’s Home National Cemetery.
View of headstones in the Civil War section of the cemetery.
2. EXISTING CONDITIONS SAHNC is located approximately four miles north of the U.S. Capitol Building. It is bounded on the east by North Capitol Street NW/ Clermont Drive NE, on the north by Rock Creek Church Road NW/ Allison Street NE, and on the west and east by Harewood Road NW. Views of headstones in Section M of (See Figure A-1) SAHNC can be characterized as a mature, serene the cemetery. cemetery environment. The Superintendent’s Lodge is located at the entrance to the cemetery and contains the Superintendent’s Office. This serves as the gathering point for families attending committal
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Figure A-1: SAHNC Cemetery Location
services and is also where visitors can obtain information about the cemetery or the location of a loved one’s gravesite. The Superintendent’s Office (shown in the photos on the left) is very small and can only accommodate a few people, plus the Superintendent.
The Superintendent’s Lodge has been modified substantially over the years, and also has previously served as the residence for the Superintendent in the recent past. The Superintendent’s Lodge was originally constructed the style of the original designs for U.S. Army Cemeteries created by BG Montgomery C. Meigs. (See Figure A-2)
The original carriage house is located to the east of the residence and is primarily used for storage. The carriage house contains public restrooms accessible from the rear.
Within the cemetery proper, there are several structures located across the grounds. The Logan Mausoleum is one of the more striking structures located at the entrance to the cemetery. A portable metal The Superintendent’s Lodge has had a roofed committal shelter is located along the north/south roadway that number of alterations over the years lies between Sections P and Q to the west and Section L to the east. and currently serves as the Superintendent’s Office. Pedestrian access to the cemetery is available at the vehicular entrance next to the Superintendent’s Lodge along Harewood Drive. There is a ceremonial pedestrian entrance (with a locked gate) and at the western corner of the cemetery at Harewood Drive and Rock Creek Church Road NW. This entryway features an ornate gateway and flag pole/ plaza area.
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Figure A-2 above shows the original plans for the standard design for a Superintendent’s Lodge for National Cemeteries. The photos on the left shows a Meigs Lodge that remains intact today at the Battleground National Cemetery near Silver Springs, MD in Washington, D.C. This is approximately what the original lodge at SAHNC would have looked like prior to being remodeled in several periods over the years.
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Maintenance contractors occupy a more contemporary structure located in the center of the cemetery. A materials storage yard is located next to the contractor’s garage and is screened by modern chain link fencing. Figure A-3 depicts major activity zones within the cemetery.
3. HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE AND MILESTONES SAHNC preceded ANC by three years and began as a military cemetery in July 1861. Just days after the Battle of Bull Run, the Commissioners of the United States Military Asylum offered six acres of land at the north end of the Home’s grounds as a burial ground for soldiers and officers. This offer was accepted in late July 1861, and the first burials were made shortly thereafter on 03 August 1861.
From 1861 to 1864, the cemetery accepted thousands of soldiers' remains from 17 of the 25 Union states, quickly filling the cemetery’s six-acre capacity. An 1874 report on the condition of the cemetery noted more than 5,600 interments, including 278 unknown, 125 Confederate prisoners of war, and 117 civilian relatives of the deceased and employees of the Home.
In 1883, more than nine additional acres were added to the grounds, bringing the cemetery’s total size to nearly sixteen acres occupied by SAHNC today. In 1900, all of the Confederate remains were reinterred to Section 16 of ANC.1
The cemetery is near President Lincoln’s “cottage” which is located Views of the carriage house exterior on the grounds of the Armed Forces Retirement Home. It is thought (top and middle) and interior (bottom) that President Lincoln walked the grounds of SAHNC when he was in residence at the cottage.
4. CIRCULATION SAHNC is served by an internal loop road in the northern half of the cemetery beginning at Harewood Road NW in the vicinity of the Superintendent’s Lodge. An additional roadway runs in a north/south direction just west of Section L. This center roadway is not required for circulation and could be converted to in-ground interment space, if needed, to increase the active life of the cemetery.
1United States Soldiers’ and Airmen’s Home National Cemetery, Washington, D.C. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.nps.gov/history/nr/travel/national_cemeteries/ District_of_Columbia/US_Soldiers_and_Airmens_Home_National_Cemetery.html
2014 Reprint - Page 99 Figure A-3: Major Activity Zones Rock Creek LEGEND: Church Cemetery
Arrival Zone: 1. Superintendent’s Lodge 2. Carriage House 3. Pedestrian Entry Gate
Cemetery Operations Zones: 4. Committal Shelter 5. Maintenance Contractor 8 Building
3 Visitor Destinations: 4 6. Logan Mausoleum 7. Area for Possible “Lincoln Clermont Drive NE Path” (Civil War Sections) 6 5 Potential New Interment 2 Zone 8. Roadway East of Section 1 L that could become a new in-ground interment 7 area
Armed Forces Retirement Home
North
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View of access road, the main pedestrian gate and the Logan Mausoleum all located in the north eastern corner of the cemetery.
5. TOPOGRAPHY Wrought iron fencing offers views into Figure A-4 depicts the topography of SAHNC. The cemetery’s high the cemetery from surrounding roads point is located at the main entrance off Harewood Road NW with an such as Rock Creek Church Road NW elevation of 320 feet above mean sea level. From this highpoint, the (top) and Harewood Road NW (bottom). As shown in the photo on terrain of the cemetery gradually slopes to a low point of 270 feet the bottom, the brick sidewalks along above mean sea level at the northern tip of the cemetery at the the cemetery edge on Harewood Road intersection of Rock Creek Church Road NW and Clermont Road NE. are in need of repair. Coordination with the District Department of Transportation is needed to determine 6. VIEWS AND EXPOSURE responsibility for improvement as their current condition creates a tripping A simple wrought-iron fence surrounds the cemetery on all sides, hazard. except along the north edge of the site, where the fence sits atop a stone retaining wall. Generally speaking, the perimeter fencing along the northern, western, and southeastern boundaries of SAHNC allows attractive views to the cemetery from surrounding roadways and adjoining sites. Views to the cemetery from Clermont Drive NE along the cemetery’s northeastern boundary are more limited due to the fact the roadway is some 10 to 20 feet lower in elevation than the cemetery at this point.
At the west corner of the cemetery stands the imposing main gate, which consists of four pairs of Doric order columns, each inscribed with the name of a well-known American General. A second vehicular gate on Harewood Road NW features a double iron gate with stone piers. Just inside this gate is the two-story Superintendent’s Lodge, originally built circa 1867, and the Logan Mausoleum, the most
2014 Reprint - Page 101 Figure A-4: Topography Rock Creek LEGEND: Church Cemetery
Contour Intervals:
320+ Feet
320-300 Feet
300-280 Feet
280-260 Feet Clermont Drive NE
Armed Forces Retirement Home
North
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prominent burial monument at the cemetery. These features are visible from the cemetery boundary along Harewood Road NW.
There are some important views from the cemetery along its western and northern edge of buildings of the Armed Forces Retirement Home compound. Views to the east of the cemetery are not as compatible with the cemetery environment and feature low rise apartment buildings located on the east side of Clermont Drive NE. The eastern edge of the cemetery could benefit from additional landscape and/or boundary wall screening of these views.
7. VEGETATIVE COVER Figure A-5 depicts the vegetative cover at SAHNC. Similar to Arlington National Cemetery (ANC), mature and specimen trees located across the cemetery are a significant part of the visual image and identity of the place and contribute greatly to the pastoral and serene setting of the cemetery.
In the 16 acres of the cemetery, there are close to 200 trees representing 35 different species that are mostly mature native oaks and maples. There are also some additional landscape beds with annuals and perennials. Continued maintenance and an ongoing program of replacement plantings should continue to be part of the program of operations at SAHNC as it is at ANC. Further guidance can be found in the Cemetery Design Guide.
8. RECOMMENDATIONS Figure A-6 depicts the location of recommended projects for SAHNC. Proposed projects are: 1. In-Ground Interment Spaces - Remove the north/south roadway located between Section P/Q and Section L and convert the ground into in-ground interment space to extend the active life of the cemetery. This could create the opportunity for up to 200 - 300 new in-ground interment spaces and is a long-term project given interment capacity is not a pressing issue at this time. 2. Superintendent’s Lodge Renovation - Undertake a structural evaluation of the Superintendent’s Lodge and carriage house to determine requirements for renovation and use as a living quarters. The original stable building should be remodeled for better storage utilization, better restroom accommodations, and to potentially provide an office/interpretive area. 3. Operations Projects - The fencing around contractor materials should be changed to a stone or brick boundary wall to screen
2014 Reprint - Page 103 Figure A-5: Vegetative Cover Rock Creek Church Cemetery Clermont Drive NE
Armed Forces Retirement Home
North
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materials instead of the contemporary chain link fencing that is transparent, modern and not in keeping with the architectural style and visual quality of the cemetery. 4. Infrastructure Projects - Undertake an inventory and assessment of current pavement and stormwater utility conditions and develop capital project requirements to bring systems to desired standards. Install conduit and materials necessary to support installation of an IT information kiosk in the cemetery. 5. Site Elements - Signage and seating are currently inconsistent across the cemetery. While there are some benches available, additional resting places would be beneficial. A consistent design vocabulary for signs and seating should be installed across the cemetery (see ANC Design Guide for recommendations). 6. Tree Preservation - Continue to evaluate, monitor, and maintain the health of the existing specimen trees and vegetation and continue with a pro-active tree replacement program in order to maintain the iconic image and identity of the cemetery. 7. Exterior Improvements - Work with the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) to repair sidewalks outside the cemetery perimeter that are currently in need of repair.
2014 Reprint - Page 105 Figure A-6: Major Master Plan Initiatives Rock Creek LEGEND: Church Cemetery
Interment Support Projects: 1. Remove Surplus Road and Redevelop for In-Ground Interment Spaces
Cemetery Operations Projects: 2. Remodel the Superintendent’s Lodge for Potential Use as 1 Quarters 3. Improve Screening and Compatibility of Maintenance Contractor Building
Other Projects:
Clermont Drive NE • Infrastructure Assessments and 3 Improvements • Construct an IT Information Center • Add Site Furnishings and Signage (Cemetery-Wide) 2 • Tree Preservation/Replacement Program (Cemetery-Wide)
Armed Forces Retirement Home
North
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