Perry monument to shut for testing and repairs

6/9/2007

PUT-IN-BAY, Ohio If you want to ride the elevator 317 feet to the top of Perry s Victory and International Peace Memorial this year, plan to do it this weekend.

Starting Monday, the monument will be closed for testing and repairs to be done in response to an incident last summer in which a 500-pound slab of its granite facing stone fell from the column s southwest corner and shattered on the memorial s upper plaza. No one was injured, but the monument was closed for 64 days while its condition was assessed and safety fences were erected around part of the plaza that was damaged.

We may still have some opportunities to open up the monument to public access on some weekends, but only if we can do it with no risk to our visitors and without disruption to the restoration work being done, said Andy Ferguson, the memorial s superintendent with the National Park Service.

The memorial s visitor center and grounds will remain open, daily except Monday. Special events and programs will be held on the visitor center s back steps, as they were last summer.