Trump's plans for massive arch move ahead

"The American people cannot afford to stand witness to Trump's risky plan to place a 250-foot (72m) structure along a busy approach path, especially if he follows through on plans to station snipers on the arch and fly drones," Duckworth wrote in the letter, which was obtained by the BBC's US partner, CBS News. The FAA, however, ruled last week that the massive structure would not pose a risk to flights coming into and out of the airport. On Thursday, the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, led by Trump appointees, announced it was ending required consultations with local officials about how the structure might affect 42 historic properties in the area.The council said in the announcement that the National Park Service, which oversees federal landmarks, had proposed a plan for mitigating potential harms to those properties, but local historic preservation officers "raised concerns with the purpose and need of the Triumphal Arch". They also questioned whether the service had adequately identified possible harms and planned sufficient actions to address them.Federal and state officials are not required to reach an agreement on a project's harm-mitigation plans, and those consultations are allowed to be terminated if both sides can't agree. The council expects to submit a final report on the process early next month.Meanwhile, Democratic Virginia Congressman Don Beyer says excavation work on the site where the arch will stand has already begun.Beyer, who is leading congressional opposition to the arch, said he found workers operating heavy equipment when he visited the site on Thursday who told him they were "conducting archaeological work to evaluate the composition of the soil". That is "deeply troubling", Beyer said, particularly because the administration is required to give 48 hours notice before work can begin.