Just days after the completion of a more than 16 million dollar renovation, the reflecting pool on the National Mall in Washington has turned green with algae blooms, while its brand-new lining is already peeling from the floor. According to ABC News, the deterioration has come almost immediately after the costly makeover was finished, and the price of the project is now set to climb again.
President Donald Trump announced that the pool will now have to be partially drained, with work beginning immediately. He blamed vandals for the pool's deterioration, though, according to the report, he did not provide any evidence to support that claim. The fresh round of work means more expensive repairs are on tap for a site that was only just refurbished.
The vandalism allegations have already led to arrests. An administration official told ABC News that, as of the previous night, five individuals had been arrested for vandalism connected to the pool. Among those detained was a three-time U.S. Olympian, who said he was arrested after touching a piece of the lining that was floating in the water.
The Olympian insisted he had done nothing wrong, saying he did not remove, damage, rip, tear, break, destroy or harm any part of the reflecting pool. He told ABC News that he was held for about five hours before being released and charged with destruction of government property. The National Park Service and the U.S. Park Police did not respond to the network's requests for comment.
Questions are also mounting over how the project was awarded and managed. ABC News reported that the companies that renovated the pool were given no-bid contracts worth nearly 15 million dollars, despite having virtually no experience carrying out federal contracts. With the new problems, the cost to taxpayers is now climbing even higher.
To deal with the algae, the Park Service is paying more than 1.7 million dollars to an Ohio company to install a so-called nanobubble system intended to kill the green growth. In the meantime, workers have been battling the green muck with vacuum pumps and strainers as they try to clear the water.
The figures stand in sharp contrast to early expectations. President Trump had originally said the project would cost about 1.5 million dollars and take roughly two weeks. Instead, it has cost more than 16 million dollars and taken about three months, drawing public criticism from people who described the spending as a waste and said they wanted their money back.