The design for the long-delayed Eisenhower Memorial by famed architect Frank Gehry received final approval from a Washington planning commission on Thursday, though disputes over costs may keep the $142 million work from ever being built.
Planned for years for a spot just off the National Mall, a short walk from the U.S. Capitol, the memorial has been plagued by delays and cost overruns. Congress has cut off construction funds for the project for three years in a row.
The National Capital Planning Commission passed the design by a 10-1 vote on Thursday.
"We think it's good urban design. It's good for the entire Southwest neighborhood," said Mina Wright, a commission member representing the General Services Administration's Office of Planning and Design Quality, who voted in favor of the design.
Despite the vote, funding for the project remains uncertain and faces deep congressional skepticism. Congress has already spent at least $65 million on the memorial. A report by the House of Representatives Natural Resources Committee last year described it as a "Five-Star Folly".
The design includes a pair of 80-foot (24-meter) columns and a 447-foot (136-meter) steel mesh tapestry depicting the Kansas plains where the 34th U.S. president and World War Two Allied commander grew up. It is expected to take up 4 acres (1.62 hectares).
Gehry's use of tapestries instead of traditional statuary has drawn the most criticism, especially from Congress and the Eisenhower family. The design approved by the panel scrapped two of the original steel tapestries but kept two supporting columns.
"Congress doesn't want this design. The public doesn't want this design," said Justin Shubow, president of the National Civic Art Society, an outspoken critic of the memorial project.
Congress authorized the memorial in 1999 and set a completion date of 2007.
Gehry, 86, is perhaps best known for the dramatic Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain.
(Reporting by Lacey Johnson; Editing by Edward McAllister and Eric Walsh)
Related Stories
The High Line | Feb 24, 2016
The last unused portion of the High Line is set to become a piazza
The piazza replaces an earlier design for the space that called for a bowl-shaped garden.
Museums | Feb 12, 2016
Construction begins on Foster + Partners’ Norton Museum of Art expansion project
The Florida museum is adding gallery space, an auditorium, great hall, and a 20,000-sf garden.
Game Changers | Feb 4, 2016
GAME CHANGERS: 6 projects that rewrite the rules of commercial design and construction
BD+C’s inaugural Game Changers report highlights today’s pacesetting projects, from a prefab high-rise in China to a breakthrough research lab in the Midwest.
Cultural Facilities | Jan 28, 2016
FIRST LOOK: Pikes Peak visitor complex will appear carved into the mountainside, at 14,115 feet
The minimalist structure will provide majestic views of the Rocky Mountains for the 600,000-plus people who visit the summit each year.
Architects | Jan 28, 2016
25-year-old architect wins competition for World War I memorial in Pershing Park
Joe Weishaar and sculptor Sabin Howard were selected from among five finalists and over 350 entries overall.
Architects | Jan 15, 2016
Best in Architecture: 18 projects named AIA Institute Honor Award winners
Morphosis' Perot Museum and Studio Gang's WMS Boathouse are among the projects to win AIA's highest honor for architecture.
| Jan 14, 2016
How to succeed with EIFS: exterior insulation and finish systems
This AIA CES Discovery course discusses the six elements of an EIFS wall assembly; common EIFS failures and how to prevent them; and EIFS and sustainability.
Cultural Facilities | Dec 21, 2015
Seven finalists named in Barack Obama Presidential Center design search
ShoP Architects, Renzo Piano Building Workshop, and Adjaye Associates are among the remaining firms that will propose designs for the $500 million archive, library, and museum.
Museums | Dec 3, 2015
SANAA’s design selected for Hungary’s new National Gallery and Ludwig Museum
After months of deliberation, the Japanese firm ultimately won the tie with Snøhetta.
Museums | Nov 23, 2015
Daniel Libeskind unveils design for new Lithuanian modern art museum
Located in the national capital of Vilnius, the Modern Art Center will be home to 4,000 works of Lithuanian art.
