Panel vote on Trump arch faces legal challenge

The National Capital Planning Commission is scheduled to vote Thursday, November 5, on President Donald Trump’s proposed 250-foot memorial arch near Arlington National Cemetery, as a federal judge weighs requests to block construction. The vote could clear an administrative step, but it would not settle the legal challenges or by itself authorize work to begin. The administration has said construction could start soon after commission approval and authorization from the Interior Department or National Park Service. A Justice Department filing described six to eight months of initial excavation and foundation work, with aboveground construction no earlier than May 2027 and a total construction period of 33 to 39 months. Those steps remain conditional; the sources do not report that the commission has voted or that construction has begun. U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, overseeing a lawsuit challenging the project, ordered the government to notify her within an hour of relevant decisions by the commission, the National Park Service or the Interior Department. She could rule on requests to halt construction as early as Thursday, but no ruling is reported. The court’s order...