A federal judge has temporarily blocked construction of US President Donald Trump’s “triumphal arch” in the nation’s capital.
US District Judge Tanya Chutkan ruled that there should be a 14-day pause before any work can start on the arch in Washington which the Trump administration had said could begin this week.
Earlier on Thursday the National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC) voted 8-4 to allow construction of the planned 250ft (72m) arch.
Trump appointees on the board said the arch would be a fitting tribute to US history and to veterans but opponents have argued it would block the view of Arlington National Cemetery, the resting place of thousands of US soldiers and service people.
The so-called Arc de Trump – a play on the name of the famous arch in Paris, the Arc de Triomphe – is one of the president’s efforts to remake the capital city in his style and is meant to commemorate the country’s 250th anniversary.
The approval on Thursday evening came after nearly nine hours of public comment.
“The White House commends the National Capital Planning Commission’s decision to fully approve President Trump’s historic vision to build a much needed Triumphal Arch in Washington, DC,” a White House spokesperson told the BBC in a statement.
It is not yet clear when construction of the arch could begin, as several lawsuits seek to block the project.
The White House criticised the federal court that temporarily halted construction as an “activist district court.”
“We are confident we will be fully vindicated as this litigation proceeds and look forward to seeing the completion of this magnificent Arch,” the spokesperson said.
A rendering of the project’s design from earlier this year includes a golden, winged Lady Liberty statue on the top of the arch, flanked by two gold eagles. The phrases “One Nation Under God” and “Liberty and Justice for All” are inscribed in gold on either side of the structure.
A website that the White House shared on social media on Friday also shows a video rendering of the arch that shows the structure emblazoned with the words “Golden Age of America” along one side.
It refers to the structure as “The Military Triumphal Arch”.
The proposed structure is sprinkled with appliques that are visually similar to the golden embellishments Trump has added to the Oval Office.
The Trump administration has also said the arch would double as a complex to store military equipment – complete with the ability to deploy snipers and drones.
“There will be no facility like this anywhere in the World,” Trump previously wrote on his Truth Social platform. He added that out of “the 59 top cities and Capitals”, Washington is “the only one in the world that does not have a triumphal arch”. He did not specify to which cities he was referring.
Mark Paoletta, the chairman of the NCPC and one of the Trump appointees, said at Thursday’s meeting that the president understood “it’s important to our national identity to display who we are through grand monuments”.
