Memorial Design Competition design team winner to be announced January 25

Memorial Design Competition design team winner to be announced January 25, 2016

By Chris Isleib
Public Affairs Officer, World War One Centennial Commission

WASHINGTON, DC ─ The U.S. World War One Centennial Commission has scheduled a formal announcement on January 25 of the winning design team for the World War One Memorial Design Competition.

The Commission was established Congress in 2013 to ensure a suitable observation in the United States of the centennial of World War I. In 2014 Congress authorized the commission to establish a national World War I memorial in Washington, D.C. Congress designated Pershing Park as the site for the memorial. Pershing Park is located one block from the White House on Pennsylvania Avenue, adjacent to the Willard Hotel and the District of Columbia’s Wilson Building.

In May 2015 the commission opened an international design competition. In Stage I of the competition, the Commission received more than 360 design concepts from designers around the world. In August, an independent jury of design professionals and historians selected five of the design concepts to advance to Stage II of the competition.

The five design teams consulted with representatives from the Commission, the National Park Service, the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts, the National Capital Planning Commission, and other stakeholders to develop and refine their design concepts. The designs must must meet a number of criteria related to design merit, site considerations, environmental impact, historical preservation, sustainability, and cost. The designers submitted their final concepts in December 2015.

The design jury is currently reviewing the Finalists' work, and will select a team to recommend for endorsement by the Centennial Commission.

The site for the World War One Memorial will be Pershing Park, at the corner of 14th Street NW and Pennsylvania Avenue, in downtown Washington DC. The site is directly across the street from the Willard Hotel, and is also next-door to the White House Visitors Center. The site was authorized by Congress in 2014.