Martin Luther King Jr. Park reopens on Sundays after COVID-19

Just like people and businesses that were negatively impacted by the COVID-19 virus, so too was the King District, which also saw itself in the line of fire as it shuttered its doors and reduced its time of operations. The park shut down all of its inside facilities in 2020, as the pandemic surged, which left many wanting to visit the historic park disappointed.

With the ill effects of the pandemic in its rear view mirror, Judy Forte, superintendent of the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historical Park announced last week that the MLK National Historical Park is open again on Sundays and able to return to a seven-days-a-week operational schedule. The park, which is dedicated to civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and located in Atlanta’s Old Fourth Ward, will be open every day from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m.

Said Superintendent Forte, “It feels good to be back. Just because we were closed didn’t mean that visitors didn’t come. So they had expectations. I always felt bad when visitors came and we were closed or they couldn’t get into the birth home.” 

As the pandemic loosened its grip, hours and tours slowly picked up, but had not been able to return to the pre-pandemic operational level.

Now, Forte says that all regularly scheduled visitor service operations will be open again all days, including interpretive tours of King’s birth home, interpretive and special event programs in the Ebenezer Baptist Church/Heritage sanctuary, the Historic Fire Station No. 6 and the park’s Visitor Center. Other special events and programming, like walking tours and special observances, will be scheduled and resumed on Sundays as well.

With a recent increase in its operational budget, Forte says she has hired more staff and has summer interns. “We are at full staff now and we are eager to serve our public,” Forte said.