WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’s plans to build a skyline-altering arch in the nation’s capital won initial approval Thursday from a key federal commission.
The National Capital Planning Commission voted to approve preliminary site and building plans for the 250-foot (76-meter) arch the Republican president wants to build on a traffic circle at the Virginia end of Memorial Bridge from Washington.
The Arlington County Board says a UFC fight at the White House that featured two of the County’s uniformed police officers “exploited good faith efforts to honor the 25th anniversary of 9/11.”
The two officers, both first responders to the Sept. 11, 2001 attack on the Pentagon, escorted a fighter to the Octagon at UFC Freedom 250 on June 14, the event President Trump hosted on the White House South Lawn to mark his 80th birthday and the country’s 250th anniversary. They were among the 9/11 first responders invited by the Tunnel to Towers Foundation, a non-profit established in memory of an FDNY firefighter who died in the attacks.
Arlington residents can expect more military flyovers — and more noise — in the coming weeks as the nation marks its 250th birthday.
The U.S. military notified D.C. that it will conduct aircraft flyovers near the National Mall from Wednesday, June 24, through Friday, July 10, as part of America’s 250th-anniversary celebrations, according to AlertDC.
The Trump administration’s plan for a 250-foot “triumphal arch” near Memorial Bridge keeps advancing — even as opposition across Northern Virginia keeps growing.
Pitched as a monument to the nation’s 250th anniversary, the arch would rise more than two and a half times the height of the Lincoln Memorial at the western end of Arlington Memorial Bridge. Critics have questioned both its historical basis and its place in the protected vista between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington National Cemetery.
The runways at Reagan National Airport will be closed for much of July 3 and 4 to accommodate celebrations in D.C.
Ambitious plans for a record-breaking fireworks display, coupled with aerial performances and rehearsals, mean that no flights will be scheduled at the airport after noon on the Fourth of July. Additionally, the airspace will be closed for several hours in the early afternoon on July 3.
A group of Northern Virginia state lawmakers is urging the National Park Service to reject President Trump’s planned 250-foot “triumphal arch” near Arlington National Cemetery and Memorial Bridge.
In a letter sent Monday, 25 Democratic senators and delegates asked the agency to find that the arch would harm historic sites and to “decline to approve it.” Their districts cover Arlington, Alexandria, Falls Church, Fairfax and other parts of Northern Virginia — the communities, they wrote, “most directly affected by this project.”
Construction of the 250-foot-high triumphal arch that President Donald Trump wants built near Memorial Bridge could occur 20 hours per day, year-round, as officials push to complete the project within three years.
That’s according to a preliminary assessment by the National Park Service.
Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) is taking legislative aim at President Trump’s proposed 250-foot “triumphal arch” near Arlington National Cemetery.
Beyer announced Wednesday that he will introduce the Arlington National Cemetery Viewshed Protection Act this week alongside Rep. Dina Titus (D-Nev.). The bill would explicitly prohibit a triumphal arch from being built in the area, permanently bar federal funds from being used for one, and prohibit similar “non-Congressionally approved structures” on any National Park Service land in the National Capital Region, according to a press release from Beyer’s office.
The number of Arlington residents counted as unemployed is up 11.4% year-over-year and has increased 50% since the start of the Trump administration, according to new state data.
A total of 4,814 county residents were looking for work in March, according to figures reported May 19 by the Virginia Department of Workforce Development and Advancement. That’s up from 4,358 a year before and up from 3,212 in December 2024, the last full month of the Biden administration.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Workers began preliminary surveys and testing Monday of the proposed site of a Triumphal Arch sought by President Donald Trump, the latest step in plans for the contentious project in the nation’s capital.
Workers were seen inspecting the site of the proposed arch between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington National Cemetery with tools and equipment. Part of the site was fenced off and pink flags typically used as survey markings were planted in the grass.
Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) is blaming President Donald Trump for surging consumer prices, after federal data released Tuesday showed inflation climbing at its fastest pace in three years.
The Labor Department’s consumer price index rose 3.8% from April 2025, up from a 3.3% year-over-year gain in March. On a month-to-month basis, April prices rose 0.6% from March as gasoline prices rose 5.4%.
A federal commission has approved the design concept for the 250-foot triumphal arch that President Donald Trump wants to build at Memorial Circle.
The U.S. Commission of Fine Arts voted to approve the concept at its meeting today (Thursday). Its members, all appointed by Trump, will review an updated design before taking a final vote at a future meeting.
