The National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC), led by President Donald Trump\u2019s hand-picked appointees, voted Thursday to approve a list of concerns about the president’s proposed 250-foot \u201ctriumphal arch<\/a>\u201d raised by staff and to ask the administration to address them before final approval.<\/p>\n While the commission is led by Trump allies, the staff is not, and raised a number of issues about the project.<\/p>\n \u201cI think the project team has some homework to do,\u201d Will Scharf, Trump\u2019s White House staff secretary who serves as the commission\u2019s chair, said after a nearly three-hour-long hearing. Scharf added he wanted the administration to provide more illustrations on how the arch would look like from different observer points — one of the staff\u2019s recommendations.<\/p>\n This rendering shows a street-level view of President Donald Trump’s “triumphal arch” with Arlington Memorial Cemetery in the background.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n National Capital Planning Commission<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n After the hearing, Trump posted on his social media platform thanks to the commission for approving the arch, but that wasn’t what the commission voted on.<\/p>\n But Scharf said during the hearing, “I’ll note, for those present, that this is not our final review of the project. That will come at a later meeting.”<\/p>\n Scharf addressed what he called “heckling” from the audience.<\/p>\n “I think it’s very important that this commission be allowed to do the work that it does,” he said. “And for those of you who are opposed to this project, I don’t think you help your case by heckling commissioners when they make their reasoned comments in response to the proposal that’s before us.”<\/p>\n Later in the hearing, he addressed the audience again.<\/p>\n “I really don’t appreciate the heckling, but I’ll continue,” he said.<\/p>\n The commission, which oversees central planning for any federal government projects in D.C. and parts of Virginia and Maryland, received 1,696 public comments on the proposed arch before then meeting, nearly all of them negative.<\/p>\n One submission called the project \u201ca glorified, unnecessary and frankly gross vanity project,\u201d while another argued \u201ca triumphal arch is totally inconsistent with the American character.\u201d<\/p>\n Several commenters called the arch \u201cugly.\u201d<\/p>\n Some 30 people signed up to register their comments during the meeting, both in person and virtually. One of them was Gary Langston, a veteran who said his parents, a Vietnam veteran and an Army nurse, were both buried at Arlington National Cemetery.<\/p>\n The project \u201cmust respect those interred there, their descendants, current and future generations,\u201d Langston told the panel. \u201cI think, \u2018What does this arch look like in another 250 years?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n Langston, who largely expressed concerns about the proposed arch obstructing views of the cemetery, later added: \u201cI think the most important piece of this is whatever is done there should be a unifying factor for the country, and at present there are elements of the design of the arch that I fear won’t stand the test of time.\u201d<\/p>\n Jimi Shaughnessy, a Marine veteran, said his great grandparents were also buried at Arlington and also panned the proposed arch.<\/p>\n \u201cNow, potentially, a gigantic arch will cast a shadow on my resting family, friends, and leathernecks, as vanity is rewarded with a momentous symbol of selfishness,\u201d Shaughnessy said. \u201cA 250-foot arch is a profound disruption and insult at the entrance to sacred ground.\u201d<\/p>\n Ahead of the hearing, the\u00a0commission\u2019s staff raised a list of issues<\/u><\/a>\u00a0it recommended that the panel ask the administration to address before it gives final approval for the structure. Among the staff\u2019s concerns were safety for pedestrians, potential negative impacts on flight paths through the nearby Reagan National Airport and the obstruction of views of Arlington National Cemetery.<\/p>\n Jamie Herr, an urban planner for the commission, presented the staff\u2019s recommendations and said the administration should offer necessary details that the commission needs to be able to give its final stamp of approval.<\/p>\n \u201cThe submission does not yet include information on any proposed lighting, stormwater management approach, and most of the site and building materials,\u201d Herr said. \u201cThese are necessary elements for the commission to review as the design advances.\u201d<\/p>\n Before the comment period, Scharf offered a prebuttal to what he said were the \u201codd\u201d arguments that the arch\u2019s height violated the law.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Height of Buildings Act is codified as part of D.C. local zoning code,\u201d Scharf said, adding that \u201ctraditionally, federal projects are not subject to local zoning requirements in that way.\u201d<\/p>\n This rendering shows what President Donald Trump’s “triumphal arch” would look like from the Lincoln Memorial.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n![\"Arlington](\"https:\/\/i.abcnewsfe.com\/a\/93aee271-f3c3-4fb2-844e-a6e1af62c6b4\/arch-front-view-ht-jt-260604_1780609537220_hpMain.jpg?w=375 "\\"Arlington")
<\/picture><\/div>\n<\/div>![\"Arlington](\"https:\/\/i.abcnewsfe.com\/a\/ec0719c9-eab4-4bc7-9526-2677e34ded49\/arch-lincoln-memorial-view-ht-jt-260604_1780609709945_hpEmbed_5x3.jpg?w=375 "\\"Arlington")
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