In a reversal just hours before the WorldPride parade, the National Park Service is removing fencing around Dupont Circle Park.

City authorities canceled an initial request to block off the site, an L.G.B.T.Q. gathering spot in Washington, D.C. But the National Park Service opted to close it.

After days of uncertainty, the National Park Service shut down Dupont Circle for this weekend's Pride festivities, even after a community backlash to the idea and the D.C. police chief withdrawing her request to close it.