President Donald Trump continues to put his personal stamp on the White House with a new $200 million ballroom.
Work will begin on the site in September and will be paid for by Trump and unidentified donors, according to White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt.
Leavitt announced the project at her press briefing on Thursday, showing renderings of what the finished product will look like. She said it will be completed “long before” Trump’s term is up.
“We are proud to announce that the construction of the new White House ballroom will begin. For 150 years, presidents, administrations and White House staff have longed for a large event space on the White House complex that can hold substantially more guests than currently allowed,” she told reporters.
“The White House is one of the most beautiful and historic buildings in the world, yet the White House is currently unable to host major functions honoring world leaders in other countries without having to install a large and unsightly tent approximately 100 yards away from the main building’s entrance,” she said.
This is the latest change Trump is making to the White House. Currently, the famous Rose Garden is also under construction with pavement replacing the grass. He also paid to have two, 88-foot-tall flagpoles put up on the White House North and South Lawns.
Trump also redecorated the Oval Office with an extensive amount of gold details, including on picture frames and in furnishings surrounding the fireplace.
The artist renderings of what the new ballroom will look like shows it, too, will be filled with gold trim, similar to decorations at the ballroom at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Florida.
Trump has long said he wanted to build a ballroom at the White House akin to the one at Mar-a-Lago — which Trump in his first term dubbed at times his “Winter White House.”
At his Turnberry golf property in Scotland this past weekend, Trump told European Council President Ursula von der Leyen, “You know, we just built this ballroom, and we’re building a great ballroom at the White House.”
“The White House has wanted a ballroom for 150 years, but they never had a real estate person, you know, nobody, no president, knew how to build a ballroom,” Trump said.
The ballroom addition will be separated from the main building and positioned off the White House East Wing.
When asked how much of the East Wing will be torn down for the upcoming construction — which currently holds the office of the first lady, the White House military office, and the visitor office — Leavitt said offices in the East Wing would be vacated while it is “modernized.”
“The necessary construction will take place,” Leavitt said.
In a press release, the White House said Trump has held several meetings with members of the White House staff, the National Park Service, the White House Military Office, and the United States Secret Service to discuss design features and planning.
“The President and the Trump White House are “fully committed to working with the appropriate organizations to preserve the special history of the white House, while building a beautiful ballroom that can be enjoyed by future administrations and generations of Americans to come,” White House chief of staff Susie Wiles said.
“President Trump is a builder at heart and has an extraordinary eye for detail,” Wiles said.
