President Trump supports the 90,000-square-foot addition, even though critics say it is bypassing legally required approvals.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The National Trust for Historic Preservation, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit organization, has filed a lawsuit seeking to block U.S. President Donald Trump’s construction of a vast ballroom attached to the east wing of the White House.
The lawsuit filed Friday targets the addition of 90,000 square feet (27,432 square meters) to the seat of the U.S. executive branch, one of President Trump’s signature initiatives.
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Preservationists have previously criticized the transformation project for changing the character of the iconic building and for not following the Trump administration’s proper review process. But Friday’s lawsuit is the first formal effort to halt construction.
“The White House is perhaps our nation’s most inspiring building and is recognized around the world as a symbol of powerful American ideals,” the group’s president, Carol Quillen, said in a statement.
“As an organization with a responsibility to protect the places where our history took place, the National Trust was forced to take this action,” she said.
The complaint accuses the Trump administration of violating several laws in starting construction of the ballroom, including failing to submit plans to the National Capital Planning Commission. Failure to prepare for environmental assessment. And they were unable to get Congressional approval to build a federal park.
It also said the administration’s entire actions violated the U.S. Constitution’s Property Clause, which says it “reserves to Congress the right to dispose of property belonging to the United States, and to make all regulations.”
The group previously sent letters to the National Capital Planning Commission, National Park Service and Fine Arts Commission asking for a moratorium on construction.
The Trump administration did not immediately respond to Friday’s lawsuit, but maintains that the planning and construction of the banquet hall was done in accordance with the law.
In October, President Trump aide Stephen Chan posted on X, accusing the organization of being “run by a bunch of loser Democrats and liberal donors playing political games.”
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Trump, a real estate mogul known for his penchant for gaudy and gilded things, supports building new ballrooms.
The president began demolition of part of the East Wing of the White House in October. He said the ballroom will have approximately 1,000 seats, an increase from the 650 seats the administration previously announced.
The amount has ballooned to between $200 million and $300 million, but the government insists the money comes from private donors.
The construction would be the most permanent physical change in Washington, D.C., since President Trump took office, as he seeks to transform the powers of the executive branch and reorganize the broader U.S. government.
Critics say the ballroom would be smaller than the White House’s current 55,000 square feet (16,764 square meters) and would upset the balance between the smaller east and west wings.
Although presidents have made interior renovations and changes to the grounds of the White House, the exterior of the building has remained largely unchanged since its reconstruction in the early 1800s.
