The National Park Service recently announced a major reconstruction project in the Utah portion of Dinosaur National Monument later this year.

The Dinosaur Quarry Exhibit Hall will temporarily close to all visitor access from September 8 through late October to complete road, parking lot, and sidewalk renovations.

The Quarry Exhibit Hall, also known as the ‘Wall of Bones’ is the most popular area to visit in Dinosaur National Monument, which sits in both western Moffat County in Colorado and eastern Uintah County in Utah. The building is located approximately seven miles north of Jensen, Utah.

The site attracts approximately 300,000 visitors per year, originally built in 1955 and remodeled in 2011.

“The work around the Quarry Exhibit Hall is part of a larger project managed by the Federal Highways Administration that will reconstruct the monument road from the boundary, past the entrance station, and to the exhibit hall,” reads a release from National Parks Service.

The renovation work will include the following:

• Extensive concrete and asphalt work
• Accessibility improvements
• A new sidewalk linking the Fossil Discovery Trail with the Quarry Exhibit Hall
• Excavation up to 10 feet deep in the exhibit hall parking lot

“Project managers looked at several alternatives to preserve access to the Quarry Exhibit Hall, but a full closure was deemed necessary to ensure public safety while completing the work,” the release continued, noting that monument staff identified the least disruptive window that would allow temperatures suitable for paving between September 8 and late October.

The closure will only impact the Quarry Exhibit Hall, and the remainder of Dinosaur National Monument will remain open during the work.

“We recognize that people travel from across the country and around the globe to see the dinosaur fossils at the monument, and this closure is an unfortunate impact to visitors and our local communities, but it is necessary to correct some serious issues and preserve access for the future,” said Superintendent Phil Akers.

For more information on Dinosaur National Monument, call 435-781-7700 or visit nps.gov/dino.