Key federal panel is expected to approve Trump's arch while it's being challenged in court

WASHINGTON (AP) — A key federal panel is expected to give final approval on Thursday to President Donald Trump’s proposed memorial arch near downtown Washington, an important step for a project that still faces legal hurdles.

The National Capital Planning Commission is being asked to approve the 250-foot-high (76-meter-high) project, which Trump has sought as part of his efforts to remake the capital city. The vote could launch construction within a day .

The arch is one of several projects around Washington that the Republican president has undertaken as he alters the nation's capital to his tastes — from renovating one of its storied public golf courses to threatening to demolish the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts . Those projects could soon face intense scrutiny after Democrats gained control of Congress in the midterm elections this week.

Many of the plans are being challenged in the courts, and three lawsuits have been filed opposing the memorial arch. A judge has been asked to block the construction so long as lawsuits are still being litigated, and she could rule as early as Thursday.

The commission oversees construction on federal land in the city and began reviewing the arch plan in June.

Opponents argue the arch is too big for the skyline and would disrupt carefully designed sightlines between landmarks in and around the capital — most prominently the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington National Cemetery — that were meant to symbolize the reunification of the North and the South after the Civil War.

But the opposition has done little to influence the members of the commission, which is led by some of Trump’s closest allies. Trump appointed Mark Paoletta, the general counsel for the White House Office of Management and Budget, to chair the 12-member panel . Two other commissioners are White House aides.

Still, a federal judge on Monday complicated Trump’s efforts to move quickly on the project.

U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, who is overseeing a lawsuit challenging the Trump administration’s plans, said she must be told of any decision by the planning commission within an hour. The order set the same time limits for any decision by the National Park Service and the Department of the Interior.

Chutkan, who was nominated by President Barack Obama, a Democrat, ruled in a case that includes complaints from the District of Columbia and Virginia, along with three veterans and an architectural historian.

On Wednesday night, the government notified the court that it had an application from a construction company for a special-use permit that would allow it to bring equipment and set up a staging area in preparation for construction. The court filing said, however, that permit had not been issued yet.

All the plaintiffs are calling for a halt to work on a monument that is set to be built on a patch of grass off a bridge that spans the Potomac River and connects Washington with Arlington National Cemetery, in Arlington, Virginia. When complete, the monument would be 100 feet (30 meters) taller than the Statue of Liberty without its pedestal.

Critics, including the plaintiffs, argue the Trump administration must seek congressional approval. The administration maintains that Congress cleared the way for a monument at Memorial Circle decades ago.

Last week, the government submitted a 106-page plan for the arch that envisions a massive structure more than 12 stories high that includes a huge bronze statue of Lady Liberty with wings and carrying a torch with an eternal flame. The structure would include an observation deck with views to the east and the west and two mezzanines.

Inside the arch are rooms for program space, offices, a staff lounge, circular staircases, multiple elevators and a fire command center. The project proposes significant traffic changes in the area, including rerouting traffic on nearby roads. Administration officials have said the arch also will have a national security function.

In a recent hearing, Chutkan asked why the Trump administration was so keen on moving ahead quickly with the arch despite the ongoing lawsuits, aside from Trump’s “desire to bedazzle the city.”

Administration lawyer Robert Stander said that the arch was “absolutely a high-priority project” and that any ruling delaying construction would impede the work of the government.