STATEMENT OF PAUL HOFFMAN, DEPUTY ASSISTANT SECRETARY
FOR FISH AND WILDLIFE AND PARKS, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, BEFORE THE SUBCOMMITEE
ON NATIONAL PARKS AND PUBLIC LANDS, HOUSE COMMITTEE ON RESOURCES, CONCERNING
THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE MUSEUM AND VISITOR CENTER PROJECT AT GETTYSBURG
NATIONAL MILITARY PARK.March 21, 2002 I wish to thank the committee for the opportunity to appear today to discuss the implementation of the approved General Management Plan (GMP) for Gettysburg National Military Park which includes our partnership with the non-profit Gettysburg National Battlefield Museum Foundation to fund, design, build and operate a new museum and visitor center at Gettysburg National Military Park. I understand that the Committee has concerns about the newly forecasted cost of this project and the fact that they are more than double the original cost estimates of these facilities as articulated in the final GMP.
Gettysburg National Military ParkThe mission of Gettysburg National Military Park is to preserve and protect the resources associated with the Battle of Gettysburg and the Soldiers' National Cemetery, and to provide understanding of the events that occurred here, within the context of American history.
Gettysburg is the most visited Civil War site in the National Park System,
and has attracted an average of 1.8 million visitors per year over the past
eight years.
The General Management Plan and Public Involvement
By law and policy, the NPS planning process provides opportunities for public
involvement in the creation of a general management plan.
For Gettysburg NMP, public involvement in the planning process
began in March of 1995 and ended in April 1999.
During this four-year period, the NPS provided the public with
opportunities to comment at over 50 public meetings and open houses and asked
for comments in four newsletters. A draft and final plan was sent to a nationwide
mailing list of 3,800 members of the public.
During the four-year planning process, the NPS received over 3,700 written
comments from the public. Of these,
more than 85% of the respondents favored the NPS proposal to rehabilitate
the battlefield landscape to its historic condition and to form a public-private
partnership to provide the NPS and its visitors with much-needed facilities
(11.5% were opposed, and 2.7% were undecided).
Many of those who favored the proposal noted that it offered a
way to build new facilities without reliance upon appropriated funds.
In November 1999 the Northeast Regional Director of the NPS signed the Record
of Decision for the General Management Plan/Environmental Impact Statement.
This marked the completion of the legal and regulatory requirements
for the NPS planning process and final approval of the GMP for Gettysburg
NMP. The approved final plan, containing
a new vision for the entire battlefield, has received widespread support from
historians, historic preservationists, Civil War enthusiasts and the general
public.
In light of concerns raised by this Committee and others, regarding the
change in cost and size of the project, the National Park Service
is willing to review the 1999 General Management Plan for Gettysburg NMP.
Implementation of the General Management Plan
Since the last hearing held by this committee on this matter, the National Park Service has taken a number of steps to implement the General Management Plan for Gettysburg.
The Borough of Gettysburg Interpretive Plan
– Concurrent with the approval of the park's GMP, the NPS funded the development
of an Interpretive Plan for the Borough of Gettysburg.
This plan, developed in cooperation with the Borough of Gettysburg,
the Chamber of Commerce, Gettysburg College and six other local organizations,
was approved in November 2000. The
purpose of the plan is to
Help those who visit Gettysburg appreciate its history by telling the story
of its people, of their lives during the Civil War, and of their role in the
Battle's aftermath and commemoration.
In doing so, the plan will help preserve the Borough's historic buildings
and sites and bolster the economic health of the town. ( Borough of
Gettysburg Interpretive Plan, p. 2)
In November, 2001, seven local organizations and institutions joined with
the NPS and the Borough of Gettysburg in a Memorandum of Agreement for the
implementation of this Interpretive Plan.
To date, our progress includes:
·
the
Borough's purchase of the Wills House - where President Lincoln spent the
night before delivering the Gettysburg Address - with grant assistance from
the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania provided by former Governor Ridge;
·
inclusion
of the Wills House in the NPS boundary through Public Law 106-290;
·
preparation
of an historic structure report and preliminary design for the Wills House,
with funding provided by the NPS, for rehabilitation as a Lincoln Museum;
·
acquisition
of the Lincoln Train Station - where Lincoln arrived in Gettysburg - by
the Borough of Gettysburg;
·
preparation
of an historic structure report and design documents for the rehabilitation
of the Lincoln Train Station as a downtown information and orientation center;
·
completion
of a Phase I Alternate Transportation Study, using NPS TEA-21 funds, for
a potential shuttle system to connect the NPS museum/visitor center to downtown
Gettysburg, with Phase II studies underway; and
·
agreement
to use the first floor of the Wills House as a downtown welcome center by
the Borough of Gettysburg, the Gettysburg National Battlefield Museum Foundation,
and the Friends of the National Parks at Gettysburg, during the rehabilitation
of the Train Station.
Rehabilitation of Battlefield Landscapes - In July 2001, the NPS initiated this long-range project as called for in the approved park General Management Plan, which will rehabilitate areas of the battlefield where major battles took place so that they more closely resemble their 1863 appearance. As a result, visitors will be able to see the battlefield as the soldiers did at the time of the battle, understand the reasons that Generals made their decisions, and understand the experiences of the soldiers in carrying out those decisions. The landscape rehabilitation process will also improve wetlands, water quality and wildlife habitat throughout the 6,000-acre battlefield.
Partnership with the Gettysburg National Battlefield Museum Foundation
Gettysburg’s GMP calls for a major partnership with the non-profit Gettysburg
National Battlefield Museum Foundation, for the fund-raising, design, construction,
and operation of a new museum and visitor center for the park.
The project’s goals are:
·
Protection
of the park’s collection of 38,000 artifacts and 700,000 archival documents
and historic photographs, one of the largest and most significant Civil War
era collections in the nation. New
facilities are needed to provide permanent protection, preservation and
display of the collections.
·
Preservation
treatment of the Cyclorama painting to stop the continued deterioration
of the largest and one of the most significant objects in the collection,
a colossal painting illustrating Pickett’s Charge, measuring 26 feet by 370
feet. The painting is designated a
National Historic Object. New facilities
are needed to provide permanent protection, preservation and display of the
painting.
·
Provision
of high-quality interpretation and educational opportunities for park visitors,
with new exhibits and broader interpretation that will provide visitors with
an understanding of the Gettysburg Campaign within the broad context of the
Civil War and American history, as mandated twice by the Congress.
(Public Law 101-377, "An Act to revise the boundary of Gettysburg National
Military Park," in 1990 directed the National Park Service (NPS) to "take
such action as is necessary and appropriate to interpret, for the benefit
of visitors to the park and the general public, the Battle of Gettysburg in
the larger context of the Civil War and American history, including the causes
and consequences of the Civil War and including the effects of the war on
all the American people." )
(The Department of the Interior FY2000 Appropriations: Joint Explanatory
Statement of the Committee of the Conference," Title I, p. 96.
U.S. Congress, 1999, stated "…Civil War battlefields throughout
the country hold great significance and provide vital historic educational
opportunities for millions of Americans.
The managers are concerned, however…the Civil War battlefields
are often weak or missing vital information about the role that the institution
of slavery played in causing the American Civil War.
The managers direct the Secretary of the Interior to encourage
Civil War battle sites to recognize and include in all of their public displays
and multi-media educational presentations the unique role that the institution
of slavery played in causing the Civil War and its role, if any, at the individual
battle sites.)
·
Rehabilitation
of the historic landscapes of the Union battle lines of July 2 and 3, 1863,
by removal of current visitor facilities and parking lots from the Union battle
line at Cemetery Ridge, where 34 Union regiments fought and over 970 soldiers
were killed, wounded, or captured during the Battle of Gettysburg.
The current partnership agreement includes not only design and construction of the new facilities, infrastructure, roads and parking, but also the design and installation of the museum exhibits, land acquisition for the new complex, the restoration and relocation of the historic Cyclorama painting, removal of current visitor facilities and associated roads and parking, restoration of the historic landscapes of Cemetery Ridge, relocation of NPS collections, equipment and furnishings to the new complex, a $10 million endowment for the maintaining and operating the facility, and the Foundation's administrative and fundraising costs. The Foundation’s fundraising campaign is now underway.
The Foundation expects to break ground for the facility in early 2004, with
the project completed in early 2006.
The current facilities will be demolished at that time and the historic
landscape restoration will begin that same year.
Museum Foundation Progress To Date
On June 30, 2000, following nine months of review through the NPS and the
Department of the Interior, the Director of the NPS approved the General Agreement
and the Fundraising Agreement with the Gettysburg National Battlefield Museum
Foundation.
In July, 2000, the Museum Foundation created the Gettysburg Museum Advisory
Committee to advise the Foundation on the exhibit design and story line for
the new museum. The advisory committee
includes several nationally renowned scholars.
On October 24, 2000, the Museum Foundation announced its selection of Robert C. Wilburn as its first President. Mr. Wilburn is the former President and CEO of the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, former President and CEO of the Carnegie Institute, a two-term Cabinet Secretary under Governor Dick Thornburgh of Pennsylvania, and has extensive experience and qualifications in economics, education, preservation, and the non-profit world. In particular, Mr. Wilburn was successful in raising $150 million in donations and gifts for the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation during his tenure there.
In November 2000, the Museum Foundation submitted its Fundraising and Financial
Management Plan to the NPS. Following
comments by the NPS and revisions by the Museum Foundation, the NPS approved
the Foundation’s fundraising plan on December 19, 2000.
In April 2001, the Museum Foundation completed a Fundraising Feasibility
study. Based upon interviews with
over 60 individuals and potential supporters, the study identified 27 prospects
with the capacity to give at the $5 million level and another 25 who could
give at the $1 million level.
The Museum Foundation initiated their public fundraising campaign for the
museum and visitor center in January of this year.
As of March 7, 2002, the Museum Foundation has reported to the
NPS that it has raised $8.38 million in donations, which includes a $5 million
donation from Mr. Kinsley and a $2.5 million appropriation from Congress for
the conservation of the Cyclorama.
The museum partnership has been designed to work with 100% donated funds;
we do not intend to seek from Congress any appropriated funds.
In July 2001, after a nationwide search and competition, the Museum Foundation
selected the design team for the new facilities.
Cooper, Robertson & Partners of New York were selected as project
architects, due to their highly praised work at Monticello, Charleston (SC),
the Museum of Modern Art, the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, and the Lincoln Center
in NYC. Gallagher & Associates
of Washington, D.C., was chosen as the exhibit design firm, based upon its
acclaimed exhibit designs for the Smithsonian Institute, the Museum of Jewish
Heritage (NPC), the Canyon Visitor Center at Yellowstone National Park, and
the Maryland Museum of African American History and Culture in Baltimore.
On January 11, 2002, after six months of intensive work by the design team,
the Museum Foundation and the NPS, the Foundation released the conceptual
design for the new museum and visitor center.
The site design was laid out to take maximum advantage of the natural
topography and to protect natural ecosystems (such as wetlands).
The exhibit design fully complies with the Congressional direction
to provide interpretation of the Battle of Gettysburg within the context of
the causes and consequences of the Civil War, and was approved by the Gettysburg
Museum Advisory Committee. The architectural
design is carefully suited to the rural agricultural landscapes of the Gettysburg
area and has been widely praised by the public.
Cost and Space Comparisons
For the record, I offer the following explanation of the changes in the
size, scope and estimated cost on this project as provided to me by NPS personnel.
The 1998 draft General Management Plan/Environmental Impact Statement, produced
by the NPS, estimated that the new museum/visitor center facility would be
approximately 118,000 square feet.
The GMP also estimated that the Foundation would need approximately $39
million to accomplish the goals described in the GMP.
In January 2002, based upon completed conceptual design and other
factors, the Museum Foundation announced that the new facilities would be
approximately 139,000 square feet in size, and that the Foundation had established
$95 million as its total project budget.
Although the size of the new facility and the cost of the partnership have
increased as a result of the completed conceptual design, none of the components
or functions of the complex, as described on pp. 87-92 of the GMP, have changed.
The proposed new museum/visitor center for Gettysburg NMP will
provide visitor services and collection storage just as described in the
GMP. The conceptual design for the
complex does not add any new functions or components to the facility that
were not discussed with the public and described in the GMP.
As a result of these changes, NPS personnel believe the actions
described in the GMP will be accomplished at a higher level of quality and
commitment to the preservation of park resources and the enjoyment of park
visitors.
In accordance with the agreement between the NPS and the Museum Foundation,
the NPS has complete review and approval authority over all elements of the
design, construction, and operations of the new complex. In particular, the
same NPS design, review, and approval processes will be followed for this
project as are followed for all NPS construction projects funded by Congressional
appropriations. As part of this review and approval process, the Museum Foundation
will perform value engineering analysis for the proposed project, and will
submit design documents to the NPS Development Advisory Board for review and
approval.
The GMP for Gettysburg NMP stated, in discussing the estimated costs of
each alternative considered, that "
the costs provided in this appendix are indicative of the capital and operational
costs of implementing the alternatives.
They are provided so that reviewers can compare the general costs
and benefits of the GMP alternatives.
Specific costs for construction and operation would be determined for individual
actions after detailed designs are produced."
This language is in conformance with NPS Special Directive 87-1, "Development
of Costs Estimates for General Management Plans, Development Concept Plans,
and Special Studies," which states:
Section 604 of Public Law 95-625 requires General Management Plans to indicate
types and general intensities of development including general locations,
timing of implementation and anticipated costs…The Service has made a commitment
to OMB and the Department that these estimates are used to compare the cost
of alternatives presented in the plans and not for budgetary purposes…Estimates
for advanced and project planning to support a proposed construction item
will be provided separately.
As articulated in the GMP, and in accordance with Special Directive 87-1,
the Museum Foundation and the NPS released revised cost estimates for the
partnership project upon the completion of the conceptual design.
In brief, the increase in the project's budget may be attributed
to four general factors; a detailed project budget comparison and square footage
comparison is attached to our testimony.
General inflation.
In the four years since the NPS and the Museum Foundation signed
the Letter of Intent in 1998 inflation has increased all costs across the
board. In addition, the Museum Foundation
has programmed its costs ahead to the proposed year of construction in 2004,
which the NPS had not done in the GMP.
Increased costs due to inflation are approximately $7.6 million.
Increased Space.
During the process of completing the conceptual design, the project
design team, composed of the NPS, the Museum Foundation, and the contracted
architectural firms, proposed additional space.
In particular, the Foundation agreed to expand the museum exhibit
space through the addition of a transition gallery, provision for "open storage"
of artifacts, and two interactive resource centers (data banks) for visitor
use. By recommendation of the design
team, "circulation" space throughout the museum complex was increased across-the-board,
in order to provide a more peaceful and reflective museum experience for visitors.
Administrative space for Museum Foundation staff was added to the
building's program. Design, construction,
and exhibit installation costs increased, proportionally, with the increase
in the building's envelope. The estimate of the increased cost over the GMP
estimate is approximately $8.5 million.
Enhanced Exhibits and Visitor Experience
. Throughout the conceptual design
process, the Museum Foundation exhibited an exceptional dedication to quality
and in numerous cases, agreed to take on the fundraising burden of accomplishing
more than is required by the partnership agreement.
For example, the GMP requires the restoration of the existing Cyclorama
Painting, and the plan expressed the hope that the missing historic diorama
could be restored "if possible."
The Museum Foundation has not only made the commitment to restore the missing
three-dimensional historic diorama which accompanied the original painting,
but has also made the commitment to represent the sky which is missing from
the original painting - both at considerable extra costs.
In addition, the Museum Foundation made the commitment to include
"open storage" areas in the new museum complex, which was not required by
the project agreement, so that the public could see more of the park’s extensive
collection of Civil War artifacts.
Other issues which the Foundation intends to address, which are enhancements
beyond the original partnership agreements include: additional access roads,
overflow parking, picnic facilities, walking trails, furnishings, film production,
and additional costs in the remediation of the current visitor center site.
The total cost of the additional enhancements and projects over
the original GMP estimate is approximately $19.6 million.
Fundraising and Endowment.
The NPS estimates in the GMP did not include the cost of fundraising;
rather, NPS estimates were based upon funds required to accomplish the partnership
goals, such as land acquisition and construction.
In keeping with standard practice in non-profit fundraising, the
Museum Foundation includes approximately $10 million for administrative and
fundraising costs in the project budget.
Finally, above and beyond the requirements of the project agreement,
the Museum Foundation informed the NPS that it would like to include an endowment
of $10 million in the project budget, to be used for ongoing facility maintenance
and preservation of the park's collections.
Future Activities
With the conceptual design for the complex now complete, the Museum Foundation
will concentrate heavily upon fundraising for the near future.
In the meantime, the Foundation has released a Request for Proposals
for a consultant to prepare the condition assessment and treatment plan for
the conservation and relocation of the Cyclorama Painting.
If fundraising is as successful as anticipated, the Foundation has announced
that it plans to break ground for the new complex in 2004.
Construction and installation of exhibits would be expected to
take approximately two years, which would indicate an opening date in 2006.
Following the relocation of NPS collections, furnishings and materials
from the current visitor facilities into the new complex, restoration of the
historic landscape of Seminary Ridge would take place in 2007.
In accordance with Director's Order #21, "Donations and Fundraising," the
Museum Foundation may not break ground for construction until it has "sufficient…funds
in hand to complete the work so that it is usable."
As a result, the Foundation will not start construction until the
Foundation and the NPS are mutually assured that sufficient funds have been
secured.
Estimates based on an actual design, inflation, fundraising costs, and a
number of enhancements that the Museum Foundation has agreed to fund, has
increased the estimated cost of the project by $56 million.
I understand the concerns the Committee may have about the foundation’s
ability to reach the new fund raising goal in a timely manner.
While it is anticipated
that groundbreaking may take place in 2004, let me assure you that construction
will not begin until there sufficient funds in hand to complete the planned
construction project.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for this opportunity to testify and we
would be most happy to answer any questions the Committee may have for us.
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