A preservation group is pushing for a pause in the demolition of the East Wing of the White House for a $200 million ballroom proposed by President Trump.
“We respectfully urge the Administration and the National Park Service to pause demolition until plans for the proposed ballroom go through the legally required public review processes,” National Trust for Historic Preservation President and CEO Carol Quillen said in a Tuesday statement.
The destruction of a portion of the White House’s East Wing to create the ballroom has hit a nerve among critics, who view it as an overhaul of a historic building for a flashy pet project.
On Monday, photos of an excavator tearing into the White House went viral, resulting in the latest outrage about the president’s efforts to quickly remake Washington, D.C., in his preferred image.
The White House rebuffed criticism of the recent demolition of part of the East Wing on Tuesday, calling it “manufactured outrage.”
In a press release, the White House alleged that the press was “clutching their pearls” over Trump’s planned ballroom, referring to it as “a bold, necessary addition that echoes the storied history of improvements and renovations.”
The Treasury Department told staff to not share images of the demolition, with employees of the department having a front-seat view of the construction.
Quillen on Tuesday expressed worries that the renovation will change the design of the building.
“We acknowledge the utility of a larger meeting space at the White House, but we are deeply concerned that the massing and height of the proposed new construction will overwhelm the White House itself—it is 55,000 square feet—and may also permanently disrupt the carefully balanced classical design of the White House,” Quillen said in the Tuesday statement.
The Hill has reached out to the National Park Service and White House for comment.
