The first step in protecting D.C.’s Tidal Basin from flooding and aging infrastructure has finished ahead of schedule and under budget, according to the National Park Service.
The now completed reconstruction of the Tidal Basin sea wall is one of the two phases in the project dedicated to strengthening the shoreline around the Jefferson Memorial, the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial and the cherry blossom trees, according to a National Park Service news release on Wednesday.
The original sea wall was built in the late 1800s and early 1900s. After over a century, the south side wall had settled more than five feet, leaving the famous cherry blossom trees, monuments and walkways victim to frequent flooding.
“We had experienced significant, daily flooding for years around the Tidal Basin,” said Mike Litterst, the chief of communications and spokesperson for the National Park Service
The overall project is expected to finish eight months ahead of schedule and $30 million under budget in May of 2026, officials said in the release. That would be about 20% under budget.
“It is a great example of government efficiency,” Litterst said.
Officials hope this construction will secure the Tidal Basin and the historic sites for another 100 years.
“It was necessary to rebuild the seawall, raise it, anchor the foundations so it would stop sinking and widen the walkways,” Litterst said.
Concrete workers are building new sidewalks and jogging paths to protect the historic site.
Those changes are aimed at improving the infrastructure so that it can handle stronger storms and rising sea-levels.
What’s next
The next phase is to plant over 400 new trees, including almost 270 additional cherry blossom trees.
The south side portion of the Tidal Basin and parts of the West Potomac Park will remain closed through the 2026 National Cherry Blossom Festival but will reopen shortly after when the replanting is completed.
The reconstruction is funded by the Great American Outdoors Act and supporting the executive order on Making the District of Columbia Safe and Beautiful.
In 2024, the National Park Service removed over 300 trees for the reconstruction, including the famous cherry blossom tree, Stumpy.
Public outcry over the removal of Stumpy led the National Park Service to collect clippings from the tree. The National Arboretum hopes to use those clippings to continue the legacy and lineage of the iconic cherry blossom tree.
But, for all the diehard Stumpy fans out there, it doesn’t look like Stumpy will be a part of the new cherry blossom recruits in the New Year’s replanting.
Litterst told WTOP that while he does need to get an update from the arboretum, the cuttings aren’t expected to be ready for the next couple of years.
WTOP’s Dan Ronan contributed to this report.