US EditionTrump unveils new rendering of sprawling White House ballroom project
The Trump administration argues the $400 million expansion is vital for security and modernization despite opposition citing lack of congressional approval and historic preservation concerns.
- During an online Commission of Fine Arts meeting on Thursday, Shalom Baranes, lead architect, presented renderings showing an almost 90,000-square-foot White House addition with a 22,000-square-foot ballroom.
- Historic preservationists are seeking a court order to suspend construction, and U.S. District Judge Richard Leon heard arguments Thursday, saying he hopes to rule sometime next month.
- Renderings include a 10-column multistory porch resembling the U.S. Treasury Department, a two-story east colonnade, and public commenters were almost all negative, Commission executive director Thomas Luebke said.
- The DOJ and defendants' attorneys asked the court to stay any injunction, citing the Secret Service warning that halting construction would imperil the president and national security.
- The plan follows demolition of the East Wing and would more than double the White House footprint, with architects considering a second story atop the West Wing to address symmetry, critics warn it could alter views from Pennsylvania Avenue and the South Lawn.
22 Articles
22 Articles
Overnight court filing reveals DOJ’s latest excuse for Trump’s ballroom
The Justice Department is fighting court battles on many fronts — including defending President Donald Trump's ongoing construction of a ballroom where the White House's East Wing once stood. ABC News reported that in an overnight filing, the DOJ offered new justification for Trump's free rein as contractor-in-chief: "national security." "Even before a federal judge has decided whether he'll halt construction of the White House ballroom, the Tru…
Trump appointees ask about White House ballroom’s design
Some of Donald Trump’s handpicked appointees who have a say in his White House ballroom project asked questions Thursday about its “immense” design and scale, even as they broadly endorsed the president’s vision for a massive expansion. The Commission of Fine Arts discussion, which also included a brief review of mostly negative public comments on Trump’s plans, revealed no immediate threat to Trump’s overall idea, which historic preservationist…
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