DC’s monuments are trying to figure out how to deal with Pokémon Go

It’s safe to say that Pokémon Go has taken D.C. by storm.
Everywhere you look there are players swiping, roaming the District in search of Pokémon to catch, gyms to train at and PokeStops to visit. Social media is all abuzz with hot takes, and news organizations can’t seem to get enough — posting stories that range from speculation about Pokémon Go’s impact on our heath, to it’s impact on our safety and so much more.
It’s everywhere.
And this means, as tourists and locals alike descend on D.C., phones at the ready to capture some creatures in augmented reality, the city’s monuments and other public spaces have got to figure out how to deal with it. The big questions: Can we attract more visitors by being PokéSavvy? or, Do we really want our visitors playing at all?
Some, like the Capitol, seem pretty enthusiastic. Perhaps social media managers are hoping that the thought of catching ’em all will lure in visitors:

#Pokemon have been spotted among the plants and flowers in the USBG's National Garden. pic.twitter.com/I3TEVH22xD

— Architect of the Capitol (AOC) (@uscapitol) July 12, 2016

Have you explored Emancipation Hall in the Capitol Visitor Center today? #CapitolExperience #PokemonGo #PokeStop pic.twitter.com/7519BCCw92

— U.S. Capitol (@visitthecapitol) July 12, 2016

Other institutions playing in to the PokéHype include the Smithsonian museums, D.C. United and D.C. Public Library, to name just a few.

Time to restock. @FreerSackler is basically a PokéStop with all these (Egyptian glass) balls https://t.co/xw0rq9oqlP pic.twitter.com/vJ8WqiDdCD

— Smithsonian (@smithsonian) July 11, 2016

You never know what you might find at RFK…#DCU #PokemonGo pic.twitter.com/Hrl7VozxWp

— D.C. United (@dcunited) July 11, 2016

Shaw Library is a PokeStop! Stock up on your pokeballs, potions, and books to read to your Pokemon! #PokemonGO pic.twitter.com/vbqNOcR98Q

— DC Public Library (@dcpl) July 12, 2016

But not everyone is so pleased.
On Tuesday the U.S. Holocaust Museum became the first monument in D.C. to ask visitors not to play Pokémon while on the premises.
“Playing Pokemon Go in a memorial dedicated to the victims of Nazism is extremely inappropriate,”Andy Hollinger, the museum’s director of communications, told ABC News in a statement. “We are attempting to have the Museum removed from the game.”
The museum also tweeted:

We welcome & encourage visitors to use technology to engage w/our exhibitions & programs while being respectful of our role as a memorial.

— US Holocaust Museum (@HolocaustMuseum) July 12, 2016

And Arlington National Cemetery followed suit shortly thereafter, tweeting:

We do not consider playing "Pokemon Go" to be appropriate decorum on the grounds of ANC. We ask all visitors to refrain from such activity.

— Arlington National Cemetery (@ArlingtonNatl) July 12, 2016

The National Mall and Memorial Parks Facebook account, hoping to strike a balance, asked that visitors be “respectful” with where and when they play.
“Yes, it might be tempting to go after that Snorlax near the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, or the Venusaur hanging out in the chamber of the Jefferson Memorial,” they wrote, “but remember that there are places of solemn reflection here at the National Mall where playing Pokemon just isn’t appropriate.”
The very same post teases to “ranger-led Pokemon hunts,” though, so take that how you will.
Some would say Pokémon Go is just one step in a trend toward AR games and, yes, life. If that’s true it’ll be interesting to watch how public, traditionally physical spaces continue to evolve and adapt to this new reality.