DC ban on indoor dining, other restrictions go into effect Wednesday night

By Valerie Bonk
December 23, 2020 | 6:57 AM

New closures go into effect Wednesday night amid the coronavirus surge in D.C.

Mayor Muriel Bowser’s newest coronavirus restrictions go into effect at 10 p.m. on Wednesday, two days before Christmas.

The newest order bans all indoor dining. Restaurants can continue outdoor dining and carryout and delivery services.

D.C. joins Maryland’s Prince George’s and Montgomery counties in banning dining inside restaurants.

All museums and libraries have to close under the new restrictions.

Reservations will be required to swim in a city pool or take part in individual fitness room sessions.

The DC Circulator National Mall routes will be canceled, and Bowser recommends that all nonessential businesses start teleworking if they haven’t already.

Currently, grocery stores, retail stores and houses of worship are held to a 25% indoor capacity with a maximum of 250 people.

Deputy Mayor John Falcicchio tells WTOP the order will remain in effect until 5 a.m. Jan. 15.

National Museum of the American Latino to be housed in historic Smithsonian building

By Neal Augenstein
September 1, 2026 | 10:36 AM

The Smithsonian Institution has decided to put the National Museum of the American Latino into an existing, historic building, rather than constructing a new one. The Smithsonian Board of Regents on Monday designated the Arts and Industries Building, a 145-year-old redbrick Victorian structure located between the Smithsonian Castle and the Hirshhorn Museum, as the permanent site of the National Museum of the American Latino, which Congress authorized in 2020. In 2022, the Smithsonian narrowed its survey for permanent locations for the National Museum of the American Latino and the American Women's History Museum to four locations near the National Mall on land owned by the National Park Service. The Arts and Industries Building, located at 900 Jefferson St. SW, was one of the four sites. New construction on National Park Service land would require congressional approval. However, since the Smithsonian already owns the Arts and Industries Building, the institution can place the National Museum of the American Latino in the existing building without additional legislation.

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