New renderings released this week provide the most detailed vision yet of Donald Trump’s proposed $400m White House ballroom addition.
The renderings, submitted by the project’s architects and released on Friday by the National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC), depict a vast sprawling structure, expected to be around 90,000sq ft, from multiple angles.
In the images, the proposed building stands level with the White House mansion.
The renderings appear in a 28-page document titled “East Wing Modernization” and is dated 11 February. It was submitted ahead of a 5 March NCPC hearing, when board members are scheduled discuss the proposal.
Trump has appointed several allies to the NCPC commission and he has installed loyalists at the Commission of Fine Arts, which is also tasked with reviewing the ballroom plans.
According to CNN, the renderings were removed from the NCPC website shortly after being uploaded on Friday. The commission did not respond to requests for comment from CNN about the removal.
The ballroom project has generated headlines and outcry from the outset. In October, Trump sparked public backlash when he abruptly began demolishing the East Wing, to clear space for his ballroom, before construction plans had been submitted to oversight bodies.
At the time, White House officials said that demolition did not require the commission’s approval, and said that they would present plans for any construction to the proper commissions.
In December, the National Trust for Historic Preservation filed a federal lawsuit, seeking to block the construction of the new ballroom, arguing that the administration violated multiple laws by tearing parts of the White House “without any review whatsoever”.
Also in December, Trump replaced the architect originally selected to design the gilded ballroom, following reports of disagreements. The White House subsequently chose Shalom Baranes Associates to lead the project.
The most recently reported cost estimate for the ballroom stands at $400m. The project is being financed by private donors and large corporations including Meta, Apple, Amazon, Lockheed Martin, Microsoft, Palantir Technologies, Google and Comcast.
Earlier this week, Trump shared two renderings of the ballroom on social media.
“It is on budget, and ahead of schedule!” Trump wrote. “When completed, it will be the finest Ballroom ever built anywhere in the World, one that has been sought by Presidents for over 150 years – and now they are getting THE BEST!”.
“Because of its unprecedented structural, safety, and security features, it will also be used for future Presidential Inaugurations” he added.
In a 5 February memo to the NCPC, Joshua Fisher, director of the White House Office of Administration, defended the administration’s decision to demolish the East Wing.
“Based on analysis, demolition of the existing East Wing structure and reconstruction of a new East Wing provided the most effective solution to many longstanding issues affecting the White House and delivered the best long-term risk reduction” he wrote.
Fisher said that that preservationists from the National Park Service and General Services Administration “advised on and documented the removal of historical elements of the building and oversaw the manner in which the removals took place” and that “significant historical items associated with the buildings have been meticulously preserved”.
Some of the preserved features include the East Wing cornerstone and plaque, movie theater furniture, the East Colonnade columns, interior wood paneling, chandeliers, historic windows and doors, and more, he said.
“Our goal is to ensure that some of these items will be integrated into the new structure” he added.
Fisher also stated that “all heavy equipment has been kept at a safe distance from the White House mansion as based on industry standards to prevent inadvertent damage to the structure” and said that “to date, the government evaluation following the removal of the East Colonnade and the East Wing buildings is that the condition of the east façade of the White House Mansion is excellently preserved.”
Later in the memo, Fisher said that beyond the ballroom, the administration has plans “for beautifying the visitor experience” including in areas such as Lafayette Park, Sherman Park, First Division Park, and the Ellipse, and said that they are also working to establish a “superior, more efficient, White House visitor security screening center”.
