General Information

NIH CAMPUS INFORMATION

The Workshop will be held on the NIH Campus in the Natcher Conference Center, Building 45, 45 Center Drive, Bethesda, MD. Please see the driving/Metro directions and security/parking guidelines below:

Driving/Metro Directions

It is strongly encouraged that you take the Metrorail to the 2009 NIGMS Workshop: Enabling Technologies for Structural Biology. The closest Metro stop is the Medical Center Metro Station on the Red Line. The NIH Gateway Center for security and visitor access to the NIH Campus is located at the Medical Center Metro Station. The Natcher Conference Center is a short walk from the NIH Gateway Center.

For Metrorail and Metrobus information, visit http://www.wmata.com.

If you do decide to drive, directions from the major local airports and from Maryland and Virginia may be found at http://www.nih.gov/about/directions.htm.

NIH Campus Access Information

Non-NIH Visitors, please allow ample access time to get through NIH security and to the conference location.

The National Institutes of Health, like all Federal Government facilities, has instituted security measures to ensure the safety of our patients, employees, guests, and facilities. The national threat advisory level, determined by the Department of Homeland Security (http://www.whitehouse.gov/homeland/), is Yellow (elevated).

All visitors must enter through the NIH Gateway Center. You will be asked to submit to a vehicle or personal inspection. Visitors over 15 years of age must provide a form of Government-issued ID such as a driver's license or passport. Visitors under 16 years of age must be accompanied by an adult.

Please be aware: Federal law prohibits the following items on Federal property: firearms, explosives, archery equipment, dangerous weapons, knives with blades over 2½ inches, alcoholic beverages, and open containers of alcohol.

Visitors are encouraged to use public transportation such as the Metrorail subway system, which has a convenient stop (Medical Center) on the NIH campus. Visit the Metro site for information on fares and schedules http://www.wmata.com/.

A list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about the Perimeter Security System, including information about pedestrian entrances, is available at http://www.security.nih.gov/PSSFAQ.htm.

Visitor Gateway Center

Visitors will be required to show one (1) form of identification (a Government-issued photo ID–driver's license, passport, green card, etc.) and to state the purpose of their visit.

The NIH Gateway Center is located adjacent to the Medical Center Metro Station at the South Drive entrance to campus from Rockville Pike/Wisconsin Avenue (Route 355). It combines visitor parking, non-commercial vehicle inspection, and visitor ID processing, all in one location. The NIH will process all visitors in vehicles or as pedestrians.

Pedestrians

For individuals arriving as pedestrians, the Gateway Center (Building 66) is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, capable of handling single individuals to large busloads of visitors quickly and efficiently.

Vehicles

For visitors arriving in vehicles, on motorcycles or bicycles, the Gateway Vehicle Inspection Station (Building 66A), provides multiple inspection lanes and allows visitors to go through inspection and get a visitor badge in one centralized, efficient process. Vehicles enter the Gateway Center complex through a new roadway, "NIH Gateway Drive," just south of the intersection of the previous visitor entrance at South Drive and Rockville Pike. Vehicles that choose to bypass parking in MLP-11 will go through inspection and enter campus at Center Drive near the National Library of Medicine. (See Gateway Map: http://parking.nih.gov/Gateway.htm.)

Gateway Center Vehicle Inspection (Building 66A) Hours of Operation:
Monday–Friday, 5 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Saturday–Sunday, 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.

After 10 p.m. on weekdays and 6 p.m. on weekends, visitors in vehicles should enter via the Commercial Vehicle Inspection Facility (CVIF) — Building 67 (on Rockville Pike between North Drive and Wilson Drive).

Taxies may enter campus via the Gateway Center Vehicle Inspection Center (or CVIF), and must use the CVIF when the Gateway Center Vehicle Inspection Center is closed.

Parking

Please note: visitor parking is limited at NIH. Visitors are encouraged to use public transportation such as the Metrorail subway system which has a convenient stop (Medical Center) on the NIH campus. Visit the Metro site for information on fares and schedules http://www.wmata.com/.

The Gateway complex also includes MLP-11, a 342-space, multi-level underground parking garage. This visitor-only lot will be the primary visitor parking for the NIH main campus. We strongly encourage all visitors to park in this garage as there will be limited visitor parking on campus, other than for patients and visitors to the Clinical Center. Vehicles parking in MLP-11 are outside of the perimeter security and will not go through vehicle inspection, reducing the amount of time it takes to get on campus.

MLP-11 Hours of Operation:
Monday – Friday
6 a.m. to 9 p.m. (entrance)
6 a.m. to 11 p.m. (exit)

Saturday-Sunday: Closed

* When MLP-11 is closed, visitors can park in lots on the NIH main campus.
* Visitors parking in MLP-11 should proceed to the Gateway Center to get a visitor badge and either walk or take a shuttle bus to their destination.
* Vehicles left in the MLP-11 parking garage after 11 p.m. on weekdays or during weekends are subject to ticketing and towing.
* The cost to park in MLP-11 is $2 per hour for the first three hours, $12 maximum for the entire day. This is the same rate currently charged for all visitor parking at the NIH.

REASONABLE ACCOMMODATIONS
Individuals with disabilities who need sign language interpreters and/or reasonable accommodation to participate in the 2009 NIGMS Workshop: Enabling Technologies for Structural Biology should contact Alicia Corbin at 301-577-0244, ext. 37, or acorbin@blseamon.com. Requests should be made at least 5 days in advance of the meeting.

Dinner Information: There will be a group dinner on the evening of Thursday, March 5, 2009. Details will be posted closer to the meeting dates. Please indicate whether you are interested in participating in the group dinner by responding on the online registration form.