Denali National Park and Preserve’s new Eielson Visitor Center will be officially dedicated during a ceremony taking place on Tuesday, August 12, 2008 at 1:30 p.m. Park staff will host the dedication event at the visitor center, which is located at Mile 66 of the Denali Park Road, in the heart of Denali National Park and Preserve. The ceremony will include addresses by invited dignitaries, with Lyle Laverty, Deputy Secretary of the Interior for Fish, Wildlife, and Parks, as the keynote speaker. The event will culminate with a ribbon-cutting, immediately followed by an open house. The ceremony and following activities are open to the public, who can reach the remote facility via the park’s shuttle bus system.

The new 7,400-square-foot visitor center features large indoor and outdoor viewing areas, an indoor dining area, and an alcove for indoor ranger presentations. Major attractions include an interactive topographical model of Mount McKinley, an art exhibit featuring works done by participants in Denali’s Artist-In-Residence program, and an exquisite, hand-crafted fabric art piece by local Denali artist Ree Nancarrow. The total cost of the building and its exhibits was $9.2 million.

Throughout the six-year design and construction period, park managers made sustainability a primary goal, striving for the highest standards under the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Green Building Rating System. The National Park Service anticipates achieving a Platinum Certification, the highest LEED rating possible, which will be the first for a building designed and constructed by the National Park Service. Elements that contribute to the LEED nomination include: the building’s low-profile design; transplanted tundra mats salvaged during construction that camouflage the roof deck; renewable energy sources such as solar panels, hydroelectric power, and natural light; energy-efficient heating, ventilation and plumbing systems; using recycled materials from the original visitor center in the new building; and carefully selecting products that are locally produced or recycled for construction.

The Eielson Visitor Center opened to the public on June 8, 2008, and will be open through September 15, 2008, weather permitting. It will reopen in June 2009.

Additional park information is available on the web at www.nps.gov/dena or by calling (907) 683-2294 from 8-4:30 p.m. daily.