$7.5M gift for Washington Monument

WASHINGTON -- A billionaire history buff has stepped forward to donate the $7.5 million matching gift needed to start repairing cracks near the top of the Washington Monument from last summer's East Coast earthquake.

David Rubenstein, a co-founder of The Carlyle Group, told The Associated Press he was inspired to help fund the repairs to the 555-foot obelisk when it became clear how severely damaged it was by a 5.8-magnitude quake Aug. 23.

The work is expected to take a year, probably keeping the monument closed for two years. The Park Service hopes to have a contractor begin work by the end of August.

Congress allocated $7.5 million in December on the condition that private donations would match that amount. Rubenstein's will be the largest gift to the nonprofit Trust for the National Mall, which aims to raise $350 million to restore the grounds and facilities.

The $15 million in public and private funds is expected to cover the cost of repairing damage directly caused by the quake. Repairing water damage will cost more, as would a seismic study or reinforcements to strengthen the obelisk against future earthquakes, a parks spokeswoman said. -- AP