Letter
Dear Col. Austin:
In its public meeting of 19 November conducted by videoconference, the Commission of Fine Arts reviewed a revised final design submission for the architectural elements of the Southern Expansion project at Arlington National Cemetery. Expressing appreciation for the responsiveness to its previous recommendations, the Commission approved the submission with the following comments.
The Commission members complimented the project team for the refinements to the design of the columbarium and the committal shelter—such as the introduction of chamfers and joints to allude to the classical vocabulary of entasis, architraves, and column capitals, as well as the modeling of profiles and details at the columbarium end walls and the oculus of the committal shelter. For the completion of the final design, they requested consideration of several further refinements: more articulation of the paving pattern within the perimeter of the committal shelter, possibly registering the position of the columns with additional lines in the manner of a tartan grid; and detailing the stone above the columns to be more reminiscent of an architrave.
The Commission commends Arlington National Cemetery for its stewardship in developing the Southern Expansion with this outstanding design for the landscape and the architectural components. In its approval action, the Commission requested that the resolution of the remaining details be coordinated with the staff, which is available to assist you in completing the final review.
Sincerely,
/s/Thomas E. Luebke, FAIA
Secretary
Col. Thomas Austin, Director of Engineering
Arlington National Cemetery
Arlington, VA 22211
cc: Greg Schwieterman, HNTB
Lee Becker, Hartman-Cox Architects
Elliot Rhodeside, Rhodeside & Harwell