People are flocking to two new $600-million-plus taxpayer-funded attractions—the Capitol Visitor Center, which is marking its first summer, and Nationals Park, marking its second. How do these expensive new landmarks compare?
Not only was it expensive and taxpayer-funded, but the Nationals’ owners withheld millions in rent in 2008, saying the ballpark wasn’t “substantially complete.”
Not only was it expensive and taxpayer-funded, but senator Jim DeMint charged that it failed to honor “our religious heritage that has been critical to America’s success.”
Entrance Fee
$5 to $335
Free
Statuary Feature
Baseball greats such as the Washington Senators’ Frank Howard
State heroes such as Utah’s Philo T. Farnsworth, inventor of the television
Respected But Hapless Leader
Manny Acta
Nancy Pelosi
Oversize Icon
The Racing Presidents
Statue of Freedom
Fun Sideshow
PlayStation Pavilion
11-foot-tall touchable model of Capitol dome
Typical Souvenir
Baseball cap
Replica of the US Constitution
Cost Of A Half-Smoke
$6.50 ($6.75 if ordered “all the way” with chili, mustard, and onions)
$4.95
Chili Dog
$7.50 (bottled or draft with souvenir cup)
There is none
Beer
675 toilets and urinals
172 toilets and urinals
Bathroom Facilities
47-by-101-foot HD scoreboard
19-by-34-foot orientation-movie screen
Largest Single-Day Crowd
40,386 (opening day 2009)
19,500 (April 20, 2009)
Estimated Annual Attendance
2,320,400 (2008)
3 million (projected for 2009)
This article first appeared in the July 2009 issue of The Washingtonian. For more articles from that issue, click here.
No Beer—But I Can Touch the Capitol Dome?
People are flocking to two new $600-million-plus taxpayer-funded attractions—the Capitol Visitor Center, which is marking its first summer, and Nationals Park, marking its second. How do these expensive new landmarks compare?
This article first appeared in the July 2009 issue of The Washingtonian. For more articles from that issue, click here.
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