The National Park Service (NPS) began its work to restore the Tidal Basin’s shoreline in the spring of 2024, and initially, it was expected to be completed in 2027 and cost an estimated $113 million!
Now, before 2025 is even over, the NPS has happily reported that the project is well ahead of schedule and seems to be millions of dollars under budget.
What has been completed so far?
Already completed is the Tidal Basin side of the seawall, which marks the first phase of the project’s two major phases as completed!
The new Tidal Basin seawall has a much deeper foundation than the original seawall, which was built in the late 1800s.
Given that the original seawall has settled as much as 5 feet over time since its construction, NPS wanted to ensure the new seawall has a “resilient design that better prepares the area for future sea-level rise and stronger storms.”
So, to avoid the risk of flooding becoming a repeat issue again in the future, NPS will be raising roughly 6,800 feet of the seawall (both on the Tidal Basin side and the River side) by an average of five feet.
What still needs to be done?
The next phase of the construction will be the redevelopment of the Potomac River side of the seawall!
This part of the project will be essential to protecting the shoreline around some of the capital city’s most treasured monuments, including the Jefferson Memorial, the MLK Jr. Memorial, and, of course, all the iconic cherry trees.
As the construction of the project’s phase 2 is completed, the NPS will begin its landscape restoration effort, which will include planting 426 new trees, including 269 cherry trees, around the Tidal Basin to replace the trees that were cut down when the construction began.
When is it supposed to be completed?
The second phase of construction, which was initially expected to be completed by 2027, is now expected to be finished by May 2026, roughly eight months ahead of schedule!
Additionally, during the spring of 2026, the planting of trees around the Tidal Basin will commence and should finish just before the start of summer.
Unfortunately, most of the areas around the Tidal Basin that are currently closed will not reopen until the landscape in the area, including the new trees, can get a chance to settle and stabilize, which means that it will be closed off during the 2026 National Cherry Blossom Festival.