Opening of WWII shrine delayed

The persistent rain this week has delayed the opening of the National World War II Memorial.

The $110 million memorial was scheduled to open during the last week of April, but may not open until May, said Betsy Glick, the public relations director for the memorial.

“We are doing everything we can, but we still cannot announce a specific date,” she said. “It depends on the weather.”

The dedication ceremony for the memorial is still scheduled for Memorial Day weekend.

One of the biggest problems caused by the rain is that the caulk used as sealant cannot harden, Ms. Glick said.

The National Weather Service is forecasting above-normal temperatures and below-normal rain for the rest of the month.

Still, meteorologist Stephen J. Rogowski offered no guarantees.

“I’m sure we’ll get more rain before the end of the month,” he said. “It would be a really dry stretch if we didn’t get rain for the next two weeks.”

Ms. Glick said delays were included in the construction schedule and that crews have already been working overtime.

“We expected three months of inclement weather,” she said. “If the [crews] had not worked overtime, the plaza wouldn’t even be done right now.”

The memorial is on the National Mall, near the reflecting pool, between the Lincoln Memorial and Washington Monument.

The semicircular, colonnade-style memorial is finished, but crew are still working on the sidewalks and landscaping.

“They’re working on the curb appeal,” Ms. Glick said. “It’s like when you shop for a new house. You don’t want to see mud and dirt all over the property.”

The Memorial Day weekend will also include a World War II reunion on the Mall that is being co-produced by the Smithsonian Institution. The events are expected to draw hundreds of thousands of visitors and will run from Thursday through Sunday, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

As of yesterday, about 117,000 tickets had been reserved for the May 29 dedication ceremony, with 50,000 persons on a waiting list.

Thousands more without tickets are expected from across the country. Memorial officials have been working on a plan with the D.C. Department of Transportation, the Metropolitan Police Department, the U.S. Park Service and other agencies to warn visitors about the anticipated gridlock.

“This isn’t just another holiday weekend in the District,” Ms. Glick said. “We hope people who haven’t made their travel plans in advance will pay close attention to the news media and to television so they will know where to park and how to get there.”

Memorial officials have raised $194 million from private sources and yesterday revised their overall budget from $172 million to $174 million for extra seating at the dedication ceremony.

“We are no longer in an active fund-raising mode,” Ms. Glick said. “We do still get donations, but we are not asking for them.”

The remaining $20 million has been placed in a trust fund to pay for maintenance and repairs.

Visitors can now see the memorial through a chain-link fence on the north side. However, the south side of the memorial, facing Independence Avenue, is obscured by wooden fencing until crews finish the landscaping and sidewalks.