Plans for Dwight Eisenhower memorial mired in controversy as family refuses to approve designs

'We need a memorial to Ike before all the veterans are gone,' says Presidential candidate Bob Dole

Former senator and World War II veteran Bob Dole, who served under Dwight D. Eisenhower, greets veterans and tourists at the National WW II Memorial to try and raise awareness for a possible Eisenhower Memorial (Washington Post)

The road to erect a memorial in America’s capital is a long one. It took 42 years and several design competitions to complete the memorial for Franklin D Roosevelt.

Now, after 16 years, former Kansas senator and presidential candidate, Bob Dole, hopes to finally build a memorial for Dwight D “Ike” Eisenhower, America’s 34th president, Supreme Allied Commander of Allied Forces Europe and, once, Mr Dole’s commanding officer in Italy.

Mr Dole considers Eisenhower “one of the great Americans”. “I want to get it built before all of us are gone,” Mr Dole said. It will take all of his political skill to succeed. Authorised by Congress in 1999, the Eisenhower Memorial slogged through the federal regulatory process. This month, famed architect Frank Gehry’s modified design received final approval from the National Capital Planning Commission, weeks after another federal agency, the US Commission of Fine Arts, gave its final approval.

But even those milestones were tarnished. Eisenhower’s family, led by granddaughter Susan Eisenhower, has never embraced the design. As a result, two congressional appropriations committees declined to provide any of the $68m (£44m) that the Eisenhower Memorial Commission sought for construction for 2016. “It simply defies logic and decency to design and build a memorial to Dwight Eisenhower without obtaining the approval of the Eisenhower family,” said Republican California congressman Ken Calvert, chairman of the subcommittee with jurisdiction over the project.

People sign a petition for the proposed Eisenhower Memorial (WP) (Washington Post)

Critics such as the National Civic Art Society and “Right by Ike” group have claimed that the Commission has a stubborn desire to create a modern memorial. Supporters say the opposition is a small group fuelled by a desire to defeat Mr Gehry.

Mr Dole isn’t interested in blame.“I don’t want to fault anybody. I just want to get it built. I respect the family, but I also respect the veterans who served under Ike.”

The Eisenhower commission spent the first six years securing the four-acre site on Independence Avenue and three more years to select Mr Gehry, a choice that continues to plague the Commission.

The past five years have been consumed by debate over Mr Gehry’s vision. Originally, it featured three stainless-steel tapestries, bas-relief sculptures and a statue of a young Ike gazing into “his future”.

The Eisenhower grandchildren have criticised it as “too romantic” and complained that it did not do justice to their grandfather’s global achievements. Commission officials said they have listened to the family’s concerns.

Mr Gehry’s original plan has been modified to remove two stainless-steel tapestries. There is still a statue of a youthful Ike, but the memorial core now features one bronze sculpture depicting Eisenhower as the supreme Allied commander during the war, and another bronze statue showing him as the president. Susan Eisenhower said that she sympathises with Mr Dole and other veterans who want to see the memorial built. “My family and countless other people are working very hard to make this happen,” she said.

Although the Eisenhowers and other critics have lost the design battle, the skirmish continues over funding. The groups that railed against Mr Gehry’s design are focusing their arguments on the selection process and the Commission’s operations. The end game remains the same: prevent the current design from being built.

It seems to be working. The House and Senate appropriations bills provide no construction funds, noted Justin Shubow, president of the National Civic Art Society and a relentless critic.

Meanwhile, the Commission has ramped up its fundraising efforts. Two weeks ago, it announced its largest gift to date, a $1m donation from Taiwan. Commission officials also have changed their tactics with Congress.

They are asking for $24m in the 2016 budget and permission to complete the project in stages. So far, it has received $46m in federal funding. Mr Dole is making calls on their behalf, but he is losing patience. The memorial will take three years to build, he said, and thousands of vets will die each year. “If we can’t satisfy the family and other naysayers, we should forget about Congress and raise the money privately,” he said. “I’m planning to be at the dedication, God willing. But I want some other guys with me.”

© The Washington Post