James McCreary II, whom President Trump brought in as his chief architect, reportedly expressed concern that the White House could be “dwarfed.”
View debris from the East Wing removed outside the White House during demolition
Workers continued to remove the remains of the East Wing of the White House after President Trump announced plans to build a banquet hall in its place.
The White House has announced that the lead architect hired by President Donald Trump to design the 90,000-square-foot ballroom will continue working after reports the two had argued over the “scale of the project.”
Architect James McCreary II, who was brought in by President Trump as lead architect in July with the splashy unveiling and renderings of the gilded, cavernous ballroom, “advised restraint over concerns” that the 55,000-square-foot executive mansion could be “dwarfed,” The Washington Post reported.
The project came under heavy criticism from former first lady Hillary Clinton, Michelle Obama, and preservationists when the entire east wing was demolished on October 20 without prior notice to make way for the ballroom. Aside from the loss of history, preservationists warned that the scale and scope of the project would dwarf the White House itself.
Carol Quillen, president and CEO of the National Trust for Preservation, said in an Oct. 23 letter to the National Capital Planning Commission, the National Park Service and the Commission on Fine Arts that “[the addition]could permanently disrupt the White House’s carefully balanced classical design, with its two small, low east and west wings.”
Despite the disagreement, McCreary will continue to serve as a consultant on the ballroom project, a White House official told USA TODAY on condition of anonymity on Nov. 26.
“As with any building, conversations will take place between principals and architects. All involved are excited to execute the president’s vision for what will be the largest addition to the White House since the Oval Office,” the official said.
For months, Trump has been hinting at the idea of a “new, big, beautiful” ballroom like the one at his oceanfront mansion, Mar-a-Lago, in Palm Beach, Florida.
In a July announcement, the White House said the president chose McCreary Architects as lead architect because the firm is “well known for its classic architectural design and is located in the nation’s capital.”
McCreary was quoted as saying in a statement that modern presidents have faced the challenge of hosting major events at the White House because it “has remained untouched since President Harry Truman.”
“I am honored that President Trump has entrusted me with helping renovate this beautiful and much-needed People’s Hall while preserving the elegance of its classic design and historical significance,” he said.As of the announcement in July, the White House said the banquet hall would be 90,000 square feet. That doesn’t change no matter how many months pass. However, the scope of the work has changed significantly. As an example, costs ballooned from $200 million in July to $300 in October. Seating capacity increased from 650 to 1,000.
The question of who was paying for the banquet hall also developed.
On June 6, President Trump posted on Truth Social that he had “toured the site of the new ballroom that will be built” and said it was “a tribute to the man known as Donald J. Trump in the White House.”
However, a White House announcement in July announced that several other people were joining the movement.
“President Trump and other Patriot donors have been generous in contributing the funds needed for the new addition,” the paper said.
Donors included U.S. companies that do business with the U.S. government, including software company Palantir, defense contractor Lockheed Martin and social media giant Meta.
No approval was obtained from the White House before demolishing the East Tower, another sore point for critics.
A White House official told USA TODAY that the National Capital Planning Commission, which oversees construction of federal buildings in Washington, D.C., has no jurisdiction over demolition and that construction plans would be submitted to the regulator “immediately.”
Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy is USA TODAY’s White House correspondent. You can follow her at X @SwapnaVenugopal.
