Finalists emerge to redesign National Mall sites

In comparison, the Washington Monument grounds are in better shape after recent security upgrades by the National Park Service, but a theater space has been left neglected for years. And there are few restrooms or food options for millions of people who visit each year.

Proposals in the competition are varied. One from New York-based landscape architect Diana Balmori calls for reshaping the landscape as a grassy bowl around an outdoor theater and adding a building with a garden roof to produce food for a restaurant below. Another design by New York-based Diller Scofidio Renfro and Hood Design, the landscape would be "peeled up" on one edge to serve as an outdoor theater and reveal a new underground structure.

"The whole intent is that the mall continues to be an evolving place," Stastny said. "The improvements at this point will carry us into the next evolution — I think that's what a lot of the designers are feeling."

Online:

National Mall Design Competition: http://www.nationalmall.org/design-competition/

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