WASHINGTON — Construction is finally underway on the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial on the National Mall after more than a dozen years of planning, fundraising and legal wrangling.
Workers have been clearing the site on the Tidal Basin since Dec. 28. They will move some trees to another part of the mall, including a few of Washington’s famous cherry trees. By next month, heavy construction will begin. Monday will mark the first King holiday, though, when organizers can finally see their work in progress.
It was supposed to be completed by now. President Bill Clinton signed a law authorizing the memorial in 1996, and President George W. Bush appeared at a ceremonial groundbreaking in 2006.
Numerous design approvals and a disagreement with the National Park Service over how to secure the site against terrorism delayed the project.
The memorial is expected to open in fall 2011.
