White House East Wing will be torn down for ballroom, Trump had promised not to do so

WASHINGTON – The full East Wing of the White House will be torn down to make way for President Donald Trump’s new ballroom, contradicting the former New York real estate magnate’s pledge that the project would not interfere with the existing US landmark.

Demolition workers on Oct 20 began

ripping 

down the section of the White House

that holds offices for the first lady and staff. Mr Trump announced that ground had been broken on the project after images of the demolition circulated in news reports, though the full extent became clear only two days later.

“In order to do it properly, we had to take down the existing structure,” Mr Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Oct 22.

An administration official said the demolition process would likely be finished within two weeks. “We can confirm that the entire East Wing is going to be modernised and renovated to, I guess, support the... ballroom project,” the official said.

The demolition of part of one of the most historical buildings in the United States has sparked an angry outcry from many Democrats and questions about whether the Trump administration followed proper protocols.

The White House has dismissed the criticism as “manufactured outrage”.

The most recent iteration of the East Wing came about in 1942 when Mr Franklin D. Roosevelt was president. US presidents have renovated and added to the White House and its grounds throughout history, but Mr Trump’s changes are the most significant in decades.

“President Trump’s desecration of the White House is an insult to the American people and a betrayal of his obligation to safeguard our history and heritage,” US Senator Angus King, an independent of Maine, said in a statement on Oct 22.

The White House said on Oct 21 it would submit plans for the ballroom construction for review by the National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC), which oversees federal construction in Washington and neighbouring states, even though demolition had begun.

White House staff secretary Will Scharf who chairs the NCPC told Reuters on Oct 22 that he had not been involved in the planning for the ballroom and would be able to look at it objectively when the proposals came before the commission.

“I’ve played no role in, in the planning process here at the White House for the ballroom, and I take my duties as NCPC chairman very seriously,” he said.

Mr Scharf said he would be able to say no to Mr Trump or other White House officials involved in the project despite his role in both institutions.

“Do I have the ability to vote, in my capacity as an NCPC commissioner, separate from my duties in the White House? Yeah, absolutely. If I don’t like a project, I’ll vote against it. If I do like a project, I’ll vote for it,” he added.

Questions about transparency

The White House has not been able to say what entity, if any, had or should have had oversight of the tearing down of the East Wing. Mr Scharf said the NCPC had responsibility for construction but not demolition.

Mr Bryan Green, who served as an NCPC commissioner under Democratic President Joe Biden, told Reuters on Oct 21 that demolition work and new construction should be linked as part of a building project review.

Mr Trump on Oct 22 said the project would cost US$300 million (S$390 million), an increase from its initial US$200 million price tag announced in July. He says he and private donors are paying for the ballroom, but he has not released full financing details.

The president dismissed concerns that his administration had not been transparent about the project.

“These pictures have been in newspapers,” Mr Trump said, referencing photos he had in the Oval Office of how the ballroom is to look like when finished. A model of the project was situated on a table in front of him.

Mr Scharf said he expected the National Park Service would be submitting the ballroom plans on the White House’s behalf to the NCPC for review. There will be at least two, possibly three, open meetings with an opportunity for comment from the public, he added.

Mr Scharf expected the review for the ballroom to take roughly three months.

“It’s a rigorous process,” he said. “It’s a process that, you know, in some cases can move quite quickly – a matter of a couple of months. In other cases we’ve had projects that take a lot longer.”

The National Trust for Historic Preservation on Oct 21 asked the Trump administration to pause the demolition until the planning commission review was completed. Its letter expressed concern that the proposed 90,000 sq ft ballroom “will overwhelm the White House itself”. The White House is 55,000 sq ft. 

But efforts to stop the project are likely to be difficult because so much of the East Wing has already been torn down.

Ms Sarah Kavanagh, who lives in nearby Maryland, said she came to the White House on Oct 22 to see the demolition for herself.

“I honestly feel like putting a bouquet of flowers for a memorial,” Ms Kavanagh, 59, said. “I think it’s disgusting.” REUTERS