Terry Hamilton acknowledges that there are little annoyances to being hosts for the presidential inauguration.

''We happen to have traffic signals down the middle of Pennsylvania Avenue,'' points out Hamilton, a spokeswoman for the District of Columbia`s Department of Public Works. ''We have to remove those signals for the day so that the floats can have clear access to the streets.''

In addition to taking down the traffic lights for Friday`s inauguration, the department will decorate about 300 light poles along the parade route with American flags, weld the sewer covers down at the request of the Secret Service so terrorists can`t pop out, then unseal them a day later so sewer maintenance can continue.

In the meantime, public works officials are nervously waiting to cope with snow, one of the most feared things in the nation`s capital.

''We basically are responsible for everything along the parade route, from making sure the streets are clean before the parade to picking up after the parade,'' Hamilton said. ''I like to say that we`re the last part of the parade that no one stays around to watch.''

But before the parade gets underway, she said, Secret Service agents will try to detect the smallest sign of trouble. No detail is overlooked.

''They asked us to give them access to the manholes on the day of the parade,'' Hamilton said. ''They will inspect them (then) direct us to weld them shut.''

City officials, embarrassed in 1987 when they so mishandled a snow storm that most of the official limos were up to their motor blocks in white stuff, have placed 300 workers on standby in case of a heavy snow.

Hamilton said city doesn`t regard the entire undertaking as a headache, however. ''We`re happy to participate in these activities,'' she said. ''Not every city can have its public works department take part in such an event. This is America`s parade and it`s America`s main street.''

Because of its unique status as a federal city, the District of Columbia`s local government carries out the functions of a city, a county and a state. As such, it will do everything from helping seal off traffic to inspecting each float before it is allowed to participate in the inaugural parade along Pennsylvania Avenue.

The district has taken on a new look this week for George Bush`s inauguration. Reviewing stands have been built along certain parts of the Avenue.

Lafayette Park, across from the White House, does not have its usual array of the homeless: They have been moved north toward H Street and out of camera view.

Many of the city`s nearly 4,000 police officers will be on extra duty, either standing guard along the parade route or managing traffic in the downtown area.

The parade is America`s, and the cash-short District of Columbia government will be reimbursed by the federal government to the tune of $2.3 million, according to city officials.

Most Americans will be able to view some of the ceremonies on television, but only about 100,000 official invitations were extended for the inauguration. Of those, just more than half were invited to attend one of the eight inaugural balls planned around the city for Friday night.

But others are coming to the events uninvited and for a different purpose.

A group calling itself the Counter Inaugural Coalition for a People`s Agenda plans to sponsor a soup line for the homeless in a grassy area across from Union Station Wednesday, coinciding with Bush`s inaugural gala. About 250 homeless people are expected.

Irving Schlaifer, president of the city`s taxicab association, said he hopes to have the most effective protest of the week.

Upset because he claims local officials have not raised fares enough, have failed to adequately protect drivers against robbers and over-regulated the cab industry, Schlaifer has asked drivers to participate in a ''taxi strike'' 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Wednesday-Sunday and 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. Monday as thousands of visitors prepare to return home.

''The idea of the three-hour strike is to pick the three hours when they`ll need the cabs the most,'' Schlaifer explained.

But most of Washington`s 627,000 residents will be neither celebrating nor protesting the inauguration of George Bush.

''This is basically an event for powerful people from all around the country,'' said Cheryl Phillips, a native Washingtonian. ''The inauguration is no big deal for people who see motorcades almost every day of the week and even if it was, they couldn`t get a ticket to most of the events.''