BeyondDC doesn’t exactly know what do about the Mall. We’ve largely avoided it until now because this is a website about the city. The Mall, well, just isn’t really a part of the city, more like a separate entity existing for tourists, post cards and, we’ll admit it, the occasional picnic. Beyond that the Mall simply doesn’t need to be covered here. It’s easy to find pages, no, books worth of information and photos of the Mall. In fact, it’s the only part of Washington most people ever see. In a lot of peoples minds the Mall is all there is to our fair city. That’s why BeyondDC isn’t giving it a whole lot of attention; we want our readers to realize there’s more, much more to this area than government buildings, museums and historical monuments.
All that having been said, BeyondDC will pose a question: Does the Mall succeed in providing a grand center to Washington? Is it what L’Enfant and McMillan dreamed? Or is it a hole, bearing little resemblance and exerting little importance over the surrounding city fabric?
BeyondDC isn’t sure one way or the other.
