WASHINGTON, April 7 (UPI) -- The family of Dwight Eisenhower, the 34th president of the United States, has objected to proposed plans for a memorial dedicated to him in Washington.
The family said architect Frank Gehry is threatening to build an inappropriate spectacle, USA Today reported.
"We have raised a number of very important questions about the scope, concept and sustainability of the design itself," said Susan Eisenhower, a granddaughter of the late president and general.
The main concern to the family is Gehry's focus on Eisenhower as a barefoot boy from Kansas, Susan Eisenhower said.
"Memorials in Washington speak for the nation as a whole," Susan Eisenhower said. "The nation is not grateful because he grew up in rural America. … He defeated Nazi Germany. He led us through tumultuous times in war and peace."
The National Capital Planning Commission will "consider the comments and requests made in the Eisenhower family's letter, along with other information in the public record," said Marcel Acosta, the commission's executive director.
The memorial is set to be dedicated on Memorial Day, May 25, 2015, the 70th anniversary of the Allied forces' victory in World War II, said Carl Reddel, executive director of the Eisenhower Memorial Commission.
"The challenge of getting this right is an important one, and in the process of doing that, we have benefited from the inputs of the family," Reddel said.
