4 p.m. WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal commission that oversees monuments in the nation’s capital has voted to reject the current design of the Eisenhower Memorial.
The National Capital Planning Commission voted 7-3 on Thursday to accept a staff report opposing the current design. The commission’s objections focused primarily on the scale and placement of columns that would hold large tapestries framing the memorial park.
A Republican congressman is telling the commission overseeing the controversial design to get moving on the long-stalled project before federal money dries up.
Republican Rep. Darrell Issa of California said that “the time for endless debate has to be over.” He told the National Capital Planning Commission that if the project continues to be delayed, it will become difficult to get more money from Congress to fund the memorial.
In an unusual appearance before the commission, Issa recommended that the group present design updates every two months.
Republican Rep. Aaron Schock of Illinois also made an unusual appearance before the commission to criticize the design. He said the imagery doesn’t covey the “majesty” of Ike and called it “a four-acre theme park without a coherent theme.”
5 a.m. WASHINGTON (AP) — The staff of a federal panel that oversees plans for monuments in the nation’s capital is recommending changes in the design for a memorial honoring President Dwight D. Eisenhower.
The National Capital Planning Commission is set to consider building plans Thursday for architect Frank Gehry’s design for the memorial. But after months of review, the commission’s staff objects to the scale and configuration of stainless steel tapestries that would frame a memorial park honoring Eisenhower.
Gehry has proposed large metal tapestries depicting the Kansas landscape of Ike’s boyhood home. Statues of Eisenhower as president and World War II general would stand at the park’s center.
A rejection by the commission could force design changes.
On Monday, Eisenhower’s hometown of Abilene, Kan., endorsed Gehry’s memorial concept, saying it honors Eisenhower’s roots.