We are less than a week out from Donald Trump’s inauguration and it’s a huge event D.C. businesses are preparing for. People from all walks of life will gather in the nation’s capital in support(or protest) of our soon-to-be President. It is expected that many who oppose Trump’s victory will try to have their voices heard.
Politico reports, ““These are unprecedented numbers,” said Mike Litterst, a spokesman for the National Park Service, said about the protests. “We’re trying to help the groups find suitable alternate locations.”
The park service has credentialed at least 28 groups on the national mall and is expecting more than 350,000, according to an internal agency spreadsheet. That’s compared to the five or six requests from groups that they usually receive for inaugurations. The service has struggled to accommodate all of the protesters, which includes a large demonstration of about 200,000 women protesting Trump and others who will sing and fast, for next weekend, Litterst said.”
Hotels and restaurants are also experiencing abnormally diverse crowds; they are taking all precautionary measures, but are also excited for the business this spectacle will bring. Politco adds, “Stacy Smith, general manager for the Hyatt Place hotel located just four blocks from the National Mall, said revelers and protesters are almost evenly splitting the 214 rooms. Calling the inauguration “a very unique event,” Smith said the hotel’s senior management will roam in the lobby to not only greet guests but to also diffuse tensions.” and that, “A representative for the Trump International Hotel, with its plush blue couches and cocktails starting at $24, said the hotel is sold out. At the St. Regis Hotel, long a favorite of dignitaries where the Master of Ceremonies sabers a bottle of champagne every evening, the rooms are gone, a spokeswoman said. They are mainly filled with people celebrating the inauguration.”
