If President Trump’s wish is granted, a new triumphal arch will rise on a Washington traffic circle, across from the Lincoln Memorial, to celebrate America’s 250th birthday next year.
Mr. Trump showed off models of the proposed arch on Wednesday at a White House fundraising dinner for another of his pet projects, a new White House ballroom. He presented models of an arched structure with two eagles and a golden winged angel at the top, somewhat resembling the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. Mr. Trump said the angel was Lady Liberty.
The arch would stand on Memorial Circle at the end of the Arlington Memorial Bridge on the Potomac River, Virginia side of Washington, DC. “Every time someone walks across this beautiful bridge to the Lincoln Memorial, it’s so beautiful that it literally says, ‘Something is supposed to be here,'” Mr. Trump said at the dinner, which was attended by business executives and donors to the ballroom.
Mr Trump thanked donors for their “generous” contributions and said there might be some money left over that could help fund the ark. “We’ll probably use it maybe for the ark or something else that comes along, but we love fixing up Washington,” he said.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for additional information about the ark, including how it will be financed and when construction will begin and end. It was also unclear whether the design had been approved by the National Capital Planning Commission, which reviews designs for federal monuments. The commission was closed due to the current government shutdown.
Mr. Trump posted an image of the proposed arch on social media on Saturday. The same illustration was shared last month by Nicolas Leo Charbonneau, a Washington-based architect at the Harrison Design firm. Mr. Charbonneau declared in his message: “A proposal for a triumphal arch in Washington for #America250”.
Triumphal arches have long been erected to celebrate notable figures or important events, dating back to ancient Roman times, who used them to honor victorious emperors or generals, said Jason Montgomery, a Washington, D.C.-based architect and urban planner.
In the United States, triumphal arches include the Washington Arch at Washington Square Park in Manhattan, which commemorates the centennial of the inauguration of former President George Washington in 1789, and the Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Arch at Grand Army Plaza in Brooklyn, which commemorates Union soldiers who died during the Civil War.
Mr. Montgomery said the design, location and decision to erect a triumphal arch to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the United States “seems reasonable,” but that it should represent all Americans in this “very polarized moment.”
“All Americans who come to Washington, D.C., and explore all the monuments should come and see this new monument and feel that it reflects their values,” said Mr. Montgomery, an associate professor of urban design at the Catholic University of America.
He added: “It would be ironic if these values were not represented in this monument and if these values were not preserved after the construction of this monument. »
The president’s plan for the triumphal arch comes as he seeks to bring a more lavish, gilded touch to the White House and remake the landscape of the nation’s capital.
Mr. Trump unveiled plans in July for his $200 million, 90,000-square-foot ballroom off the East Wing, raising concerns among preservation experts about the feasibility of completing such a large project by the end of his term while respecting the historic nature of the building. Earlier this year, he paved the White House Rose Garden, which sits just outside the Oval Office and Cabinet Room, in a style that resembled a patio at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.
The White House has exercised more control over the design and planning of federal architecture in recent months, considering plans to redevelop Southwest Washington.
Mr. Trump pursued the goal of “making federal architecture beautiful again,” signing an executive order in August requiring that federal buildings in Washington maintain a classic style of Greco-Roman architecture associated with the marble columns and austere hallways of the Supreme Court and the U.S. Capitol.
Mr. Montgomery urged the administration to hold a “national conversation” before beginning construction on the triumphal arch, emphasizing that the monument would belong to the American people. “We are the legacy of these 250 years of history. »
Mr. Trump suggested he saw things differently.
Asked on Wednesday who the ark was for, Mr. Trump replied: “Me.”
