ST. LOUIS (KMOX) - The number of people who visited the Gateway Arch last year was up 2% from the year before, but still well below the number of those who checked out the monument before the five-year, $380 million renovations.
The year before the renovations began the Arch drew 2.5 million visitors. Last year it drew 2.05 million.
Gateway Arch Park Foundation Executive Director Ryan McClure says there are some good reasons for the decline:
"We had the riverfront underwater for two months. We had the longest shutdown in government history and national park visitation overall was down, particularly in urban national parks."
Another factor, he says, is that some people don't realize the renovations have been completed.
"This park was under construction for a while, for many years. So, it will take a while for folks to realize that we are fully open, this new experience is on line, it's here," McClure says.
McClure and Park Deputy Superintendent Frank Mares says things are trending in the right direction. They say the monument had its best December since 2006 and January numbers were strong.
Plus Mares says, downtown is on the upswing, "We've got lots going on with the new aquarium, new Ballpark Village additions. It's not just always about the Arch. The Arch is part of a downtown which is part of a region."