A group of Vietnam War veterans asked a federal judge to block construction of President Donald Trump’s 250-foot triumphal arch near Arlington National Cemetery, writing that the project — which Trump announced last year — still lacks congressional authorization.

“Defendants have barreled ahead, doing site testing, drawing architecture plans, and seeking approvals from commissions populated by friends of the administration,” they wrote. “Yet, throughout this time, Defendants have failed to obtain (or even seek) approval from the one body that, by law, must authorize the project: Congress.”

The request comes one day after the Trump administration filed a notice to the court, saying the National Capital Planning Commission plans to meet to consider for approval the final site and building plans for the arch on Nov. 5. They say construction could “commence immediately” after that meeting if those plans are approved.

The veterans asked U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan to rule on their request by Nov. 4.

The case has been ongoing since February, but Chutkan has not yet issued a ruling that would block construction. In September she ordered the government to provide at least 48 hours’ notice before “engaging in any activity” around the site of the arch.

The government had previously agreed to provide at least two weeks’ notice before beginning construction of the arch. Wednesday’s filing complied with that deadline, coming two weeks ahead of the scheduled meeting and possible start date for construction.

The Department of Justice did not immediately respond to MS NOW’s request for comment on the filing.

Thursday’s request to block construction is the latest development in a lawsuit filed in February by three Vietnam War veterans in conjunction with watchdog organization Public Citizen. They have argued the arch would significantly disrupt the historically significant sightline between the Lincoln Memorial and the Arlington National Cemetery.

“Its location on Memorial Circle would situate the monument on an axis between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington National Cemetery, obstructing a line of sight that was designed to represent the unification of the Nation following the Civil War and that has existed for nearly a century,” they wrote in the lawsuit.

The veterans have also argued the project requires congressional authorization.

The Trump administration has argued Congress has already authorized the arch project, pointing to a 1925 plan that called for two tall columns — not an arch — situated near the proposed site for Trump’s arch. That proposal looked very different from Trump’s vision.

Trump unveiled his plans last October for a 250-foot Arc de Triomphe-style monument in honor of the country’s 250th anniversary. The original plans called for a towering triumphal arch that would dwarf the nearby 99-foot Lincoln Memorial and other monuments. The gilded arch would sit on Memorial Circle, a traffic roundabout that sits between Arlington National Cemetery and a bridge over the Potomac that leads to Washington, D.C.

Since that lawsuit was filed, Trump’s plans for the arch have developed. Last month, Trump announced the arch would become a “top grand Military Complex/Triumphal Arch, to house, store, and have the rapid ability to use large numbers of drones, plus Snipers, on both the roof and the plaza areas, and additionally have and hold hold large quantities of sniper ammunition in storage.”

But the final plans submitted to the Interior Department and to the National Capital Planning Commission make no mention of a military complex. There are also no references to a national security purpose.

“The proposed arch would be an approximately 250-foot-tall reinforced concrete structure clad in stone and ornamented by a central figure and two eagles, positioned above each arch leg,” the project synopsis says. “The arch would be 166 feet wide with a 55-foot-wide opening, providing views from the observation deck to area landmarks. The arch would be built from concrete and finished with granite.”

The commission is set to vote on this design in the Nov. 5 meeting and could begin construction immediately, if Chutkan does not intervene on behalf of the veterans.

The veterans’ lawsuit is not the only challenge to Trump’s arch. Earlier this month, the Arlington County Board in Virginia sued to block construction of the arch. That lawsuit alleged the Trump administration was moving too quickly, bypassing the full review process.

“The National Park Service, the agency responsible for projects on national park land such as Memorial Circle, is proceeding full-speed toward ground-disturbing construction,” the lawsuit said. “Although the agency has claimed that a final decision to construct the Arch has not yet been made and purports to be engaged in a routine decisional process, that rushed process appears to be a pretext designed to shore up justifications for building the Arch in accordance with the President’s repeated marching orders.”

That lawsuit also criticized Trump’s national security plans for the arch.

“Using the Arch to store large stockpiles of ammunition and as a staging point for drones and snipers, so close to commuters and tourists, will dramatically worsen these public-safety harms and the risk of accidents,” they wrote in the suit.

The arch, which would sit directly in the flightpath to Washington National Airport, has also drawn concerns from the aviation community. Association of Flight Attendants-CWA President Sara Nelson criticized the arch, warning it poses a dangerous obstruction in an already congested flightpath. That flight path is also still riddled with safety concerns following last year’s fatal crash involving a commercial airplane and military helicopter over the Potomac River.

The architects have proposed adding an eternal flame at the recommendation of the Federal Aviation Association to alleviate some of these concerns.

A judge has not yet ruled on the lawsuit brought by the Arlington County Board.

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