The design was unanimously chosen by the competition jury after an open, two-stage international design competition that received over 350 entries. GWWO’s work as Architect-of-Record for the project included numerous National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) Section 106 meetings and formal presentations to the Commission of Fine Arts (CFA) and National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC), as well as countless meetings with agency staffs including CFA, NCPC, DC Historic Preservation Office (HPO), and the National Park Service. The results of the firm’s extensive collaboration led to the quickest approval process for a memorial project in recent history.