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The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Meadowood Special Recreation Management Area, along with many partners, is pleased to announce that construction of a Mason Neck Gateway Kiosk will begin shortly. Planning for the Gateway exhibit began almost seven years ago and will highlight the area's history and exceptional outdoor recreational opportunities.Construction of the kiosk is scheduled to begin the first week of November and will last through early winter. Some activity may be noticeable in the wooded area on the BLM property between Gunston Elementary School and the Verizon building on Gunston Road. Staff of the BLM will be working with the Federal Highway Administration Eastern Federal Lands Highway Division and their contractor to complete the construction.This wayside exhibit will provide an opportunity for visitors to learn about the many historic, environmental and recreational opportunities available on the peninsula. Also part of a larger network, the kiosk will also serve as a major trailhead for the Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail and Washington Rochambeau Revolutionary Route National Historic Trail, as well as an introduction to other trails in the National Trails System. A network of existing and planned trails will enhance the visitor experience by facilitating access to Gunston Hall (a National Historic site), Pohick Bay Regional Park, Mason Neck State Park, Elizabeth Hartwell Mason Neck National Wildlife Refuge, and Meadowood Special Recreation Management Area.Project features will include an access road, a 12-space parking lot, covered kiosk with information panels, lighting, current access to the South Branch Loop Trail and a rain garden for storm water drainage.Many federal, state and local government agencies collaborated on this project, as well as the Friends of Meadowood, who submitted the initial successful proposal for partial funding in 2006. Project funds are from a variety of sources: the Virginia Department of Transportation Transportation Enhancement Program; Bureau of Land Management; Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail Office, National Park Service; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; Virginia State Parks; Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority and Gunston Hall. The Northern Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District will also install a rain garden at the site.An information meeting has been scheduled from 8:30am to 9:30am on Monday, November 4, 2013, at the Lower Potomac Field Station, Building 2 Conference Room at 10406 Gunston Road, Lorton, Virginia 22079.Please contact John Reffit, (703) 339-3467, for further information. A conceptual site plan for the project is available on request.