The National Capital Planning Commission voted 8-1 on Thursday to grant preliminary approval for a 250-foot arch proposed by President Donald Trump. While the project advances, the commission deferred a final decision on whether the 1910 Height of Buildings Act, which limits skyline structures in Washington, D.C., legally applies to the federal construction. The project, one of several being pursued by the president in his quest to reshape parts of the nation’s capital, would be located on a traffic circle at the Virginia end of the Memorial Bridge.
National Capital Planning Commission Preliminary Approval for the Memorial Bridge Arch
The commission’s decision to move forward with the arch marks a significant step in the administration’s efforts to reshape the capital’s landscape. The vote saw eight of the 12 commissioners in favor, one opposed, and three members voting “present.” Despite the preliminary green light, the panel stopped short of resolving the legal tension surrounding the 1910 Height of Buildings Act. Staff had previously recommended that the commission grant approval while requesting a series of changes to ensure the arch complied with the act, including redistributing the heights among the main structure, the habitable roof where an observation deck is planned, and the statues that would top it.
The commission chair, Will Scharf, who also serves as White House staff secretary, has expressed personal doubt regarding the law’s applicability to federal projects. Scharf noted that he believes the act is not applicable to federal construction—a position that contradicts what he acknowledged was the “long-held” view of the commission he has led for the past year. Scharf stated that the applicant, the Department of the Interior, had provided a legal analysis that he said makes a “compelling argument” that the law is not binding on the federal government.
Meghan Hottel-Cox and the Department of the Interior Legal Dispute
The debate over the 1910 law has created a divide between the commission’s legal staff and the Department of the Interior. Ahead of the meeting, the Interior Department’s Office of the Solicitor submitted a four-page memo arguing that the height restriction is “just a local zoning ordinance and does not apply to the United States.”
In contrast, the commission’s own general counsel and secretariat, Meghan Hottel-Cox, has warned that abandoning the long-standing interpretation of the act could have far-reaching consequences. “Since 1938, NCPC has operated with the understanding that the HBA was intended to bind federal projects and has applied the HBA accordingly,” Hottel-Cox wrote in a four-page memo. She further stated that if the act no longer applies to federal property in the District, it could “fundamentally reshape the city’s architectural fabric, the balance of local vs. federal authority, and the visual character of the nation’s capital.”
Public Testimony Opposing the Lincoln Memorial View Corridor
The meeting was marked by extensive public pushback, with more than 40 people testifying against the project during more than two hours of public comment. The commission has received nearly 2,000 written comments regarding the project. Many critics argued that the arch is too big and would disrupt the carefully designed view between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington National Cemetery, which was intended to symbolize the reunification of the North and South after the Civil War. Opponents also expressed concerns about vehicular traffic and pedestrian safety, while others insisted that Congress must approve the arch.
The arch would be more than twice as tall as the Lincoln Memorial, which stands 99 feet tall, and nearly half the height of the Washington Monument, which is 555 feet tall. The project is currently being reviewed alongside other construction efforts, including a $400 million ballroom at the White House where construction continues, involving crews scraping paint from stone columns at the north entrance.
U.S. Commission of Fine Arts and Vietnam War Veterans Lawsuit
The commission left the project team with several questions to address before the next meeting, which is scheduled for early September. During that session, the panel is expected to revisit the height limit question. “I’m guessing that we’re going to have a vigorous debate on this subject when this project next comes before the commission,” said Scharf. The U.S. Commission of Fine Arts, a separate federal agency, approved the design for the arch in May. While a White House official told NPR that the administration expects the proposal to proceed as-is, the project also faces a lawsuit brought by Vietnam War veterans.
