White House Ballroom Demolition Stuns Critics

Images of excavators tearing down the East Wing of the White House this week have sparked outrage, as the demolition appears to contradict assurances from President Donald Trump’s administration that his planned 90,000-square-foot ballroom would be added on top of—not in place of—the existing structure.

“Mr. Trump originally said back in July that the construction of his ballroom, at a cost of more than $200 million, ‘won’t interfere with the current building,’” The New York Times reported. “It’ll be near it but not touching it,” CNBC quoted Trump as saying.

The privately funded project, the first major change to the White House since 1942, uses no taxpayer money, according to the administration. The White House called the backlash “manufactured outrage,” describing the ballroom as a “bold, necessary addition that echoes the storied history of improvements and additions” by prior presidents.

Officials said the National Capital Planning Commission will review plans once demolition is complete. “Construction plans have not yet been submitted … but will be soon,” a White House official told Reuters. The NCPC does not have jurisdiction over demolition work.

Although the White House is exempt from the National Historic Preservation Act, past administrations have voluntarily submitted renovation plans for review. “While not legally binding, [these reviews] form the preservation framework that has guided White House alterations for decades,” Engineering News-Record noted.

In a letter Tuesday, Carol Quillen, president and CEO of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, urged the White House to pause demolition, writing, “The Standards provide that new additions should not destroy the historic fabric of the property.”

ACECO, the Maryland contractor handling the demolition, has faced online backlash and taken its website offline. “Destroying ‘The People’s House’ with no regard for their permission,” one commenter said, according to Newsweek.

The addition is expected to be completed before the end of Trump’s term, CBS reported.

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