The National Capital Planning Commission voted Thursday to allow President Trump to move forward with plans for a sweeping memorial arch near Washington, DC.
The commission approved the proposal by an 8-4 vote. The 250-foot structure would stand across the Potomac River from the Lincoln Memorial, on a traffic circle positioned between Arlington National Cemetery and the Arlington Memorial Bridge.
The Trump administration had signaled that construction could begin soon after the project received approval.
However, the plan was put on hold shortly after the vote when US District Judge Tanya Chutkan issued a temporary order barring construction for at least 14 days. The decision came in response to a lawsuit filed by Virginia and the District of Columbia.
More than 100 people spoke against the proposal during a meeting that lasted roughly nine and a half hours before the commission cast its vote.
Opponents say the design, which evokes France’s famous Arc de Triomphe, would disrupt the view between Arlington National Cemetery and the Lincoln Memorial.
Critics also maintained that the administration should have obtained approval from Congress before advancing the project.
“The arch is illegal. It is obscene. It is nothing more than a monument by and for a leader whose legacy will be vilified, as will those who support him,” Susan Douglas, an activist who joined the hearing virtually from an anti-arch demonstration, told the commission.
Rep. Jared Huffman, a California Democrat, also characterized the proposal as both unlawful and misguided.
“This arch would dishonor America,” Huffman said, arguing that it would function as “a tribute to Donald Trump,” rather than a memorial honoring veterans.
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Mark Paoletta, the Trump-appointed chairman of the commission, defended the president’s vision for the structure.
“President Trump understands as president and a superb builder that it’s important for our national identity to display who we are through grand monuments,” Paoletta said.
Trump previewed another proposed use for the arch in September, saying it could be designed to “house, store, and have the rapid ability to use large numbers of drones, plus Snipers, on both the roof and plaza areas.”
He also said the structure would contain “large quantities of sniper ammunition in storage.”
“There will be no facility like this anywhere in the world,” Trump said.
The arch is part of a broader collection of projects Trump has pursued in the nation’s capital during his second term. The initiatives are being presented as an effort to “beautify DC” ahead of the United States’ 250th anniversary.
The administration recently finished renovations to the Reflecting Pool on the National Mall and has proposed improvements to a federally owned golf course operated by the National Park Service.
Trump also attempted to close the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts for a major renovation, but a federal judge blocked that effort.
The White House did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment Thursday night.
With Post wires
