Commenting on yesterday’s consideration of Mall privatization, worried reader Edward replied: “If you’re really thirsting for more sidewalk cafes, privatizing is *not* the answer. Next thing you know the Smithsonian will start to charge admissions…”

Though Edward was thinking hypothetically, admissions fees may become a reality for the Smithsonian if a recommendation by Rep. James Moran is heeded. During a congressional hearing yesterday addressing institutional problems of concern to both the Smithsonian Institute and Congress, Moran suggested a $1 per person entrance fee as a remedy to Smithsonian facilities that are under-funded and thus under-maintained, including exhibits that Smithsonian official Sheila Burke described as “quite outdated” and a dire lack of sufficient plumbing infrastructure at the National Zoo (the potential dangers of which are all too clear after yesterday’s private zoo fire in Cumberland). According to Burke’s statements, the Smithsonian needs $94 million for repairs, $43 million short of the maintenance spending in this year’s proposed budget.

While a dilapidating Smithsonian complex is disconcerting, the precedent of an entrance fee could be even more troubling. After all, our city’s museums are sources of civic pride not just because of their excellence, but because they serve as gratifying reminders that not all of our nation’s money is spent on upper-crust tax breaks and harebrained military absurdities. Millions flock to the various museums and galleries every year, and while a single dollar per person is a trifle, the introduction of such a fee would mean the loss of the social profundity of free admission, as well as the risk of an increased fee in the future.

Do you think entrance fees are an acceptable solution to the Smithsonian’s straits? How importance is the Smithsonian’s legacy of free entrance to you, and to the city?