Pi(ASE RETURN TO: TE~l~:::CA L INFORMATION CENTER OL:VER SERVICE C£NTIER NATIONAL PARK SERVICE Comprehensive Design Plan & President's Park Washington, D.C. May2000 United States Department of the Interior • National Park Service ~~~~~[D P-/tz/ () 1 Contents Introduction 5 The White House and President's Park 5 Purpose of the Plan 6 Need for the Plan 8 The Planning Process 8 The White House and President's Park- An Overview 11 The Setting 13 Structures, Facilities, and Grounds 13 Roadways 15 Other Site Elements 16 The Historical Development of the Landscape 1 7 Pierre Charles L'Enfant, 1791 17 Thomas Jefferson, ca. 1804 17 Andrew Jackson Downing, 1851 18 Senate Park Commission Plan (McMillan Plan), 1901 19 McKim, Mead & White, 1902 19 Olmsted Brothers, 1935 19 National Park Service, ca. 1935 20 The Truman Renovation, 1949-52 20 John Carl Warnecke & Associates, 1962-6 9 20 The Landscape Today 21 The White House and President's Park 21 The Urban Setting 22 Historic Structures and Districts 23 Site Capacity 28 The Home and Office of the President 31 Executive Residence · 32 Executive Office Support Services 33 News Media Facilities 3 7 Visitor Use, Services, and Experience 39 Public Access to the White House 39 Who Visits the White House and President's Park? 43 The Visitor Experience 44 iii Contents Special Events and Denwnstrations 51 Regulations 51 Special Events 55 Transportation 58 Local Street Network 58 Site Access 62 Public Parking 63 Public Transit 66 Tourmobile and Tour Bus Circulation 6 7 Pedestrians 6 9 Bicycles 71 Site Management and Operations 73 Jurisdiction and Security 73 Maintenance Operations 75 Utilities 76 The Comprehensive Design Plan 79 A Vision for the White House and President's Park 79 Introduction 81 The Context for the Plan 81 The Development of the Plan 8 7 The Organization of the Plan 88 Comprehensive Design 90 Planning Direction 90 Actions 91 Resource Conservation and Management 96 Planning Direction 96 Actions 97 The Home and Office of the President 100 Planning Direction 100 Actions 102 Visitor Use and Services 1 0 7 Planning Direction 108 Actions 109 Special Events 114 Planning Direction 114 Actions 114 Transportation 117 Planning Direction 11 7 Actions 118 iv CONTENTS I_ Site Management and Operations 121 Planning Direction 121 Actions 121 Future Studies 123 Appendixes 125 A: Legislation 12 7 B: A Summary of Significant Plans and Projects at President's Park 128 C: An Inventory and Assessment of Structures and Memorials within and adjacent to President's Park 140 ' D: Primary Interpretive Themes for the White House and President's Park 156 E: Compliance, Mitigating Measures, Construction Techniques, Phasing, and Cost Estimates 163 F: Determination of Site Use Capacity 1 74 G: Planning Work Group Participants 177 H: Desired Futures- News Media 183 Glossary 186 Selected Bibliography 189 Planning Team and Consultants 194 Index 197 v Contents Illustrations Existing Conditions 7 Aerial View of Lafayette Park, the White House, and the Ellipse 15 Historic Districts 25 Memorials I Monuments 26 White House Grounds: Commemorative Plantings and Gardens 2 7 Resource Conservation and Management: Photographs 30 White House: Functional Relationships 32 The Home and Office of the President: Photographs 38 Visitor Use and Services: Photographs 41 White House Public Tour Route 4 7 Visitor Use and Services 50 Special Events 52 Special Events, Transportation, and Site Management and Operations: Photographs 57 Average Weekday Traffic Volumes 60 Pedestrian Street Crossings 70 Pedestrian Entryways 91 Ellipse Side Panels and Walkways 93 Plan -Aboveground 94 Plan - Belowground 9 5 Ellipse 104 White House Education Center and Museum 108 Pedestrian Corridor 112 Events Plaza - Plan View 116 ~ Tables 1: Historic Structures, Sites, and Districts in and near President's Park 24 2: Parking Supply for Staff in the President's Park Area 35 3: Numbers of Visitors on White House Tours 42 4: Special Events within President's Park 53 5: Levels of Service on East-West Streets Adjacent to President's Park 61 6: Mode of Arrival for White House Tour Visitors 63 7: On-Street Parking Supply by Regulation and Location in President's Park 64 8: Metrorail Stations 66 9: Weekday Pedestrian Volumes 69 10: Weekday Bicycle Volumes 72 Vl CONTENTS Executive Committee Comprehensive Design Plan for the White House The Comprehensive Design Plan for the White House and President's Park was developed with the continuing involvement and guidance of the following agencies and federally chartered organizations, which have stewardship and oversight responsibilities at the White House and President's Park: Executive Office of the President Executive Residence at the White House White House Military Office U.S. Department of the Treasury U.S. Secret Service General Services Administration National Park Service District of Columbia Commission of Fine Arts National Capital Planning Commission Advisory Council on Historic Preservation Pennsylvania Avenue Development Corporation (until 1996) The plan was approved on March 29, 2000, by Robert G. Stanton, director of the National Park Service, which had pri­ mary responsibility for developing the plan. The plan was ap­ proved by the Commission of Fine Arts on April 19, 2000, and by the National Capital Planning Commission on May 4, 2000. vii Executive Committee TrlE WHITE HOUSE AND ITS SETIING '1 do hereby declare and make known that the location of ... the ... district of ten n1iles square shall be found by running four lines of experiment. ... Being so run) do hereby declare ... that all that part t>Vithin the aid four lines ... is now fixed upon, and ctirected to be sw·veyed, defined, limited, and located ... for the permanent seat of the Government of the United States." *r :.-::::.-:..·-- . -----.~................ ~ ... - .. "THE PRESIDE rT' S HOUSE will stand upon a rising ground, not far fron1 the banks of the Pototnac, possessing a delightful water prospect, with a cointnanding view of the Capitol." "I pray heaven to bestow the best of blessings on this house, and all that shall hereafter inhabit it. May none but honest and wise men ever rule under this roof!" John Adams to Ab1gall Adams November 2. 1800 as quoted nWi mSea! Too Wtife Hots~ Ttlft HSJOfY al <~~1 A.rJ1811C811/d9a (Washington DC Atr.crlc<m Ins tute or Arch tects F~ess 1992) 34 Introduction [History) clearly shows that we arrive at catastrophe by failing to meet situations­ by failing to act where we should act .... [The] opportunity passes and the next situation always is more difficult than the last one. - Eleanor Roosevelt he overall purpose of the Comprehensive Design Plan for the White House and President's Park is to provide a framework for future management of the area that will respect past T traditions and meet the needs of tomorrow. This effort represents the first comprehensive plan for the property since 1791, when George Washington designated the site for the residence of the president. The White House and President's Park In 1790 George Washington signed an act of Congress declaring that the federal government would reside in an area "not exceeding ten miles square . on the river Potomac" - the city now known as Washington, D.C. The placement of the White House was integral to the design for the new federal city developed by Pierre Charles L'Enfant. The architecture for the house was to be monumental, with a classical theme symbolizing democracy, and large public parks surrounding it to provide an appropriate setting. The site, selected in 1791, had sweeping vistas that would connect the buildings representing the executive and legislative branches of government. Construction of the presidential residence began in 1792, and in November 1800 the first residents- John and Abigail Adams- moved in. Since then, the White House has been the official residence of every president of the United States of America. The White House is a classic Georgian manor house that is one of the most important buildings in the history of the United States: + It is the home and office of the president of the United States and the setting for official presidential functions, including dinners and welcoming ceremonies for foreign heads of state. 5 Introduction + It is the center of the executive branch of government, the headquarters of the commander in chief of the nation's armed forces, and an office complex. + It is a unit of the national park system, a public tour destination, and a fully accredited museum. + It is the place where citizens have the constitutional right to come and petition the president. + It is a focus for popular public celebrations, such as presidential inaugural parades, annual Easter egg rolls, and the Pageant of Peace in December. The White House and President's Park, including Lafayette Park and the Ellipse, are a public trust, important symbols of our nation's heritage. The management of this area must remain flexible to accommodate the various formal and informal uses that occur daily. The preservation of the site's resources must be ensured by prudent and adequate planning and by sensitive design. These are the planning and design challenges inherent at the White House and President's Park. The White House and the surrounding President's Park consist of approximately 82 acres. The total area includes several smaller, related elements. To the north is Lafayette Park; to the west are West Executive Avenue, the Dwight D. Eisenhower Executive Office Building (formerly the Old Executive Office Building) and its grounds, plus the First Divi­ sion Monument; to the east are East Executive Park, the Treasury Building and its grounds, plus Sherman Park; and to the south is President's Park South, commonly referred to as the Ellipse. Boundaries for the site generally run from H Street on the northern edge of Lafa­ yette Park, along Jackson and Madison Places south to Pennsylvania Avenue, east and west on Pennsylvania Avenue to 15th and 17th Streets, and south to Constitution Avenue.