Frank Gehry's $100 million Eisenhower Memorial gets preliminary approval

After a rejection earlier in the year, Frank Gehry has gotten some good news: his revised design for the Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial, located in Washington, D.C., has received preliminary approval. 

The National Capital Planning Commission voted 10-1 to approve the revision, according to Architecture Lab. The same commission rejected Gehry's original proposal months ago, citing concerns about the large metal tapestries proposed by the architect and how they would affect the view to and from Capitol Hill. 

In September, Gehry unveiled the new design, with the metal tapestries removed along with other changes. After the approval, Gehry said in a statement: "I'm grateful to the National Capital Planning Commission for its decision, and for its cooperative engagement in resolving the issues."

According to the Los Angeles Times, members of the Eisenhower family have expressed strong disapproval of the design, even the revised version. 

The memorial must go through other levels of approval before it is finalized, including funding approval from Congress; the estimated cost of construction is over $100 million.

The revised design addresses several concerns raised during the NCPC meeting earlier this year:
• The design revisions eliminate the East and West Tapestries, allowing the influence of the adjacent buildings to define and unify the site.
• The northern singular columns are set back more than 47 feet from the Independence Avenue Right-of-Way and are fully within the planes of the adjacent building facades.
• The revised design has widened the Maryland Avenue view corridor from 95 feet to 135 feet. This creates a more proportionally horizontal framing of the U.S. Capitol.
• Original concept included four columns that were within the 160-foot right of way. With the elimination of the side tapestries, the revised plan now includes only two columns within the southern edge of 160-foot right of way.