The White House East Wing will be “modernized” as part of the project, with aides to First Lady Melania Trump moving temporarily.
White House begins construction of the ballroom
The White House is expected to begin construction in September in a $200 million ballroom in the eastern White House.
WASHINGTON – The White House is scheduled to begin construction in September in a $200 million ballroom in the eastern part of the mansion where President Donald Trump vowed to pay with his own money and private donations.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the new “bornly designed and carefully crafted” ballroom for the 90,000-square-foot ballroom will be a “very necessary and exquisite addition” to host a major event at the White House complex.
The Ballroom, which the White House will be completed before Trump’s term ends in 2029, will accommodate 650 people around 200 more than the White House East Room, where the president has historically had a large reception. Trump frequently complains that the White House doesn’t have a large ballroom suitable for entertainment.
“President Trump and other donors have generously committed to donating the funds needed to build this $200 million structure,” Levitt said at a July 31 briefing with reporters.
Leavitt did not name the donors at a media briefing, nor did he list them in accompanying statements from the White House. USA Today contacted the White House to clarify whether the donor list was released Thursday evening and did not receive an immediate response.
Leavitt said the White House East Wing will be “modernized” as part of the project, with East Wing staff, including first lady Melania Trump’s aide, will be relocating temporarily. The East Wing, built in 1902, has been modified several times and renovated several times, and in 1942 the two-storey added, Leavitt said.
Leavitt said the ballroom would be “virtually separated” from the White House main building, but “its theme and architectural heritage are roughly the same.”
The White House has released a handful of renders showing the interior of the ballroom with white and gold walls and gold walls and trimmed, while the large windows inhale natural light.
The massive overhaul comes when Trump promoted some cosmetic changes in the White House and transformed it into a stone patio, including ongoing renovations to Rose Garden. New gold embroidery throughout the oval office. And two rising flag poles on the grass in the north and south.
“President Trump is a builder of the heart and has an extraordinary eye for details,” White House Chief of Staff Susie Wills said in a statement. “The President and Trump White House are fully committed to working with the right organizations to maintain the special history of the White House, while building a beautiful ballroom for future administrations and generations of Americans to come.”
The government has contracted the construction of Clark to oversee the project, and oversees Washington-based McClelly Architect as lead architect.
Contribution: Reuters
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