Archinect - News

Congress appoints engineer Thomas Austin as the next Architect of the Capitol

2024-05-24T14:22:00-04:00

The appointment of military engineer Thomas Austin as the next Architect of the Capitol has been announced by a 12-member bipartisan commission of lawmakers in Washington, D.C.

Austin, a retired Army veteran and the former Director of Engineering at Arlington National Cemetery, will assume the office beginning on June 24th and serve a ten-year term, which soon could be subject to direct congressional oversight after the controversy surrounding predecessor Brett Blanton’s abuse of office.

“The Architect of the Capitol plays a vital role in welcoming millions of visitors to our Capitol and ensuring it is a functional workplace. Thomas Austin has managed construction projects and facilities of all sizes, maintained one of our nation’s most hallowed landmarks, and served our country in the military. We are confident that with his extensive experience, Thomas Austin will be an adept and capable Architect of the Capitol,” the committee’s public statement reads.

Previously on Archinect: ...

New bipartisan Architect of the Capitol provision could grant congressional oversight for the first time

2023-12-19T17:02:00-05:00

Proactive measures to prevent a repeat of the recent misconduct saga that led to the firing of former Architect of the Capitol Brett Blanton have been introduced in Congress as part of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for the upcoming fiscal year.

Under the new bipartisan legislation, Congress would have the sole power to fire any future officeholders for the first time. Its language provides for the establishment of a special oversight commission that would both hire and remove permanent appointees, who currently serve at the pleasure of the sitting president. Advocates say it could potentially help fill the vacancy left in the wake of Blanton’s dismissal earlier this year and help buck an even longer trend of successive appointment delays that dates to the mid-90s.

New York representative Joseph D. Morelle said it “just seemed as though the system needs to be designed to protect the interests of the people here — members, staff … and everyday Americans who come to the...

President Biden fires Architect of the Capitol Brett Blanton

2023-02-13T17:32:00-05:00

President Biden on Monday fired J. Brett Blanton, the federal official responsible for the maintenance and operation of the Capitol complex, amid bipartisan calls for his resignation, after an investigative report accusing him of misusing his position and revelations that he avoided the Capitol during the Jan. 6, 2021, attack.

Blanton, who had faced calls for removal over accusations about abuse of government property while in office, was only recently revealed to have been in absentia on the afternoon of January 6th. Speculation had remained over the President’s willingness to remove the AOC from the 10-year appointment posting, the revised ability to do so by joint resolution being one of the would-be powers the past congress attempted unsuccessfully to elbow in at the last second. With his removal, no members of the Capitol Police Board who were working on January 6th are serving in the roles they occupied on the day of the insurrection.

Architect of the Capitol J. Brett Blanton faces questions before Congress amidst calls for resignation

2023-02-10T14:09:00-05:00

Beleaguered Architect of the Capitol J. Brett Blanton shocked members of Congress on Thursday by admitting he was not on Capitol grounds for the tumultuous January 6th attacks during a query into alleged ethics violations while in office.

At a special hearing called by members of the House Administration Committee, Blanton said he was “monitoring developments remotely” during the riots while declining to provide his specific whereabouts in what came as a surprise to committee members of both parties who also took offense to his apparent frequent tardiness from the grounds that continues to this day.

Blanton, who remains the only member of the U.S. Capitol Police Board not to resign in the wake of the incident, also answered questions about his misuse of government-provided SUVs and deliberate misrepresentation of himself as a police officer among other accusations which include giving private tours to “patriots” in the weeks leading up to January 6th, 2021.

Previously on Archinect:...

Congress moves to limit Architect of the Capitol following investigation into misconduct

2023-01-04T15:02:00-05:00

Embattled Architect of the Capitol J. Brett Blanton could be getting one step closer to being forced out of his job after the outgoing 117th Congress finally proposed last-minute legislation that would make it easier for the Trump appointee to be removed from office following an Inspector General’s investigation into the abuse of his title while in office.

CBS News has the latest details on the effort to hold Blanton accountable for his actions, which reportedly included the misrepresentation of himself as a law enforcement official and multiple misuses of his government-provided SUV by him and his family.

Under the proposed new legislation, the formerly term-limited appointment would for the first time be subject to the conditional removal of its office holder via an impeachment or Congressional joint resolution finding either “permanent disability, inefficiency, neglect of duty, malfeasance; or a felony or conduct involving moral turpitude.”

Earlier on Archinect: Trump's Architect...

Trump's Architect of the Capitol is under investigation for ethics violations in D.C.

2022-11-03T12:56:00-04:00

The federal Architect of the Capitol is under scrutiny for ethics violations after apparently using his office to give “patriotic” private tours in the weeks leading up to the contentious elections of November 2020.

The Washington Post is reporting that Trump appointee J. Brett Blanton is now being investigated by the federal Inspector General’s office for allegedly using his office to give family members access to government-owned vehicles and areas of the capitol building that had been restricted due to Covid-19.

The office’s report identified “a significant amount of administrative, ethical, and policy violations as well as evidence of criminal violations throughout the investigation,” including several incidents where Blanton misrepresented himself as a police officer (a class misdemeanor under District of Columbia law) in addition to a campaign of “fraud, waste, and abuse against not only the AOC but also the taxpayer.”

Earlier on Archinect: Architect of the U.S. Capitol detai...

Congress approves AIA-recommended upgrades aimed at making the people's house more accessible and democratic

2022-07-25T19:58:00-04:00

The House Select Committee on Congressional Modernization has approved select recommendations first provided to that body by the American Institute of Architects (AIA) during a recent hearing on March 17.

A slate of proposals for updating Congressional office space was originally put forth in testimony by Quinn Evans Senior Associate Katie Irwin, AIA, who advised that “we can be good stewards of these historic spaces while sensitively integrating modern updates to facilitate the technology-fueled pace of work.”

Among the total 29 adopted proposals were the following (from Irwin):

Flex hearing space: The House should identify and develop a space that can be used to hold hearings with alternative seating formats such as a roundtable-style.
Flexible and modern member office templates: The CAO should provide a broad menu of furniture options and templates for member office space that considers modern and flexible design and function concepts.
Portal for all reservable space: The House sho...

Architect of the U.S. Capitol details 'significant' damage from Jan. 6 attack

2021-02-26T17:03:00-05:00

The top operations and maintenance official of the United States Capitol told lawmakers on Wednesday that the costs of the Jan. 6 attack will exceed $30 million, as his office works to provide mental health services, increase security and repair historical statues and other art damaged in the riot.

Video via nytimes.com

Build your own U.S. Capitol with LEGO Architecture Studio's latest kit

2016-08-18T15:45:00-04:00

LEGO Architecture Studio celebrated its big launch in retail stores everywhere back in 2013 with the monochromatic Architectural Toolbox and a collection of LEGO-brick model kits of the world's most famous buildings. Although LEGO Architecture retired some of the kits over time, they recently unveiled their latest icon: the U.S. Capitol in Washington D.C.

The neoclassical Capitol has undergone several construction phases and restoration since George Washington laid its foundation on September 18, 1793. But with this LEGO kit, you get to call all the shots.

For $99 a set, the LEGO reinterpretation contains over 1,000 pieces, including all the essentials like the columned façade, the two-tiered dome, colonnades, the north and south wings, and steps and lawns. The dome can be removed to reveal a detailed interior of the National Statuary Hall, complete with columns, a tiled floor, and statues.

You can also brush up on the Capitol's architectural design and history in an accompanying bookl...

The race to complete the Capitol dome restoration in time for the inauguration of the 45th U.S. President

2016-01-11T18:36:00-05:00

It is fervently hoped that when the 45th president takes the oath of office outside the Capitol on 20 January 2017, a $60m project to restore the building’s august cast-iron dome will have been completed. [...] “There’s never been a major renovation of the dome. It’s important work and was long overdue. It apparently has a thousand cracks and pieces have been falling off for years but, once this work is done, it should be good for another 150 years.

U.S. Capitol building to receive much-needed facelift

2014-03-27T13:42:00-04:00

Since the Civil War, the majestic dome of the U.S. Capitol has symbolized the unity of the United States, despite the discord in the government it overlooks. [...] But the dome has lately grown as fractured as the federal government, and Tuesday the Architect of the Capitol announced that a $59 million project to save it would begin next month. [...] There are now hundreds of cracks and deficiencies, and water already has stained parts of the Capitol’s interior.