For those of you who are new to the area, I want t...

For those of you who are new to the area, I want to point out that the Old Cathedral (officially Basilica of Saint Louis, King of France) is not part of the national park and Arch grounds, but is part of the Archdiocese of Saint Louis. For that reason, their website doesn't contain info about the construction next door. It's operating as a small parish despite being a historical landmark.

That's why you'll see a man outside in the parking lot at certain times- he's there to make sure the parking lot in front of the church have space only during Mass times (worship to everyone else) and not to be used for the Arch/park grounds during Mass. If you say that you're not going to the Cathedral for Mass, he will not let you use the church parking lot. You'll see a sign saying that parking for church only during Mass times.

I suggest that you check out the website for CityArchRiver- that's the name of the main project for Jefferson National Memorial Park- they have info and webcams to check out the current progress.