The national debate surrounding President Donald Trump’s planned “Triumphal Arch” has swelled to match the scale of the project itself.  The 250-foot arch proposed for Memorial Circle near Arlington National Cemetery has spurred lots of concerns, including disruption to flight patterns (thoug h the Federal Aviation Administration said Friday the arch likely poses no threat to flights coming in and out of Reagan National Airport), disproportionate cost, and the potential to disrupt DC’s iconic landscape. Since Trump proposed the project earlier this year, a group of Vietnam Veterans has sued to stop the project, House Democrats have sought to introduce a bill to block its construction, and the National Capital Planning Commission has requested more details on how the project could impact traffic in the area.  Those details came Friday when the National Park Service published a slew of documents detailing how the arch could impact views of historic monuments around the National Mall and traffic patterns, as well as the efforts NPS is taking to mitigate those effects.  Related A Landscape Architect Reviews Trump’s Proposed Triumphal Arch The documents are available for public comment through June 15, and members of the public can submit comments through the agency’s Planning, Environment and Public website or by emailing [email protected].  Here are five takeaways from the NPS report:  What Would the Actual Arch Contain?  The arch would be built in Memorial Circle and stand about 166 feet tall, with a statue on top extending the full height to 250 feet. The width of the opening of the arch would be 55 feet, and the arch would have a total footprint of 15,197 square feet.  The arch would be divided into a ground level containing a security screening area and lobby, a mezzanine level with mechanical spaces not open to the public, a gallery level with an exhibit and potential cafe and gift shop, and an exterior observation deck that would allow visitors to see the view from the top. The interior would include six stairways and five elevators.  The project would also include paving the interior of Memorial Circle to create a public plaza.  How Would the Arch Impact Views of the Monuments?  The report contains an extensive list of potential “adverse effects” to views and monuments in the surrounding area.  The most significant effects would occur along the Memorial Avenue corridor, which is centered along an axis between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington House.  The Lincoln Memorial and Arlington House are purposefully constructed to face each other and are connected by Arlington Memorial Bridge in a symbolic representation of the reunification of the North and South after the Civil War. The arch disrupts this by partially obstructing the view of the Lincoln from Arlington Cemetery, according to the report. The arch will also disrupt the views from the top of the Washington Monument toward Arlington Cemetery, per the report.  The project would also impact the view of Arlington Cemetery from the Pentagon, which the report defines as a crucial cultural element of the building.  The report also says that the 35-foot granite pylons framing the circle would also be “removed or diminished” under the plan, which the report identifies as defining features of the landscape of the area. The vegetation in Lady Bird Johnson Park, located near Memorial Circle, may also be impacted due to construction, according to the report.  “With the proposed undertaking, the corridor would be physically altered with an intrusion that changes the circulation patterns, and contributing viewsheds, and modifies the design continuity of the corridor,” the report reads.  How Would the Project Impact Traffic?  The report outlines significant impacts to traffic patterns around Memorial Circle both during and after the arch’s construction, which NPS estimates will take two to three years.  During construction, westbound traffic from Arlington Memorial Bridge would be reduced to two lanes, eastbound traffic from Memorial Avenue would be directed onto Arlington Memorial Bridge and unable to turn northbound on Arlington Boulevard, and northbound traffic from Washington Boulevard would not be able to enter the circle.  The south side of Memorial Circle would also be closed during the majority of construction.  The project would also permanently alter traffic circulation within the circle, which currently operates under a system of yielding and merging, with no traffic signals. The proposed plan would implement traffic signals throughout the circle to control vehicle and pedestrian crossings, implementing three new vehicle traffic groups and eight new pedestrian crossing areas.  How Would People Visit the Arch?  Similar to the Washington Monument, the arch would be open to visitors using a timed-entry system where visitors can reserve time slots online or on-site.  Visitors would join a queue to enter the first floor of the arch, where they would undergo a security screening, then they could use one of the stairways or elevators to enter the mezzanine level, which would house all visitor services.  What Comes Next?  The public comment period runs through June 15, after which NPS will take the comments under consideration before deciding whether to make alterations to the project, abandon it entirely, or publish the final proposal for the project. The report specifies that NPS actually considered and rejected smaller designs for the arch because they were deemed to have “greater impact” on the cultural landscape, specifically because the smaller designs would fully obstruct the views between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington Cemetery, while the larger design simply frames the view.  The project is still navigating regulatory hurdles, but the Commission of Fine Arts—which Trump has filled with his own appointees after firing several members—approved the design for the project at its May meeting. The National Capital Planning Commission voted Thursday to direct the administration to address a series of public concerns before final approval, so NPS will also need to provide the commission with more details on the project before final approval. The post Trump’s Triumphal Arch Would Alter Monument Views and Traffic Patterns, Report Says first appeared on Washingtonian. ...read more read less