We don’t touch the White House.” “That’s a bridge, a glass bridge going from the White House to the ballroom,” Trump said, of the new structure that will replace the East Wing.
The New York Times reported Wednesday, citing a senior administration official, that the ballroom plans will mean the demolition of the entire East Wing.
Two Trump officials told NBC News similar information, noting the entire East Wing of the White House will be demolished “within days”.
White House officials insist demolition is allowed without the commission’s approval.
During Trump’s first term, the White House went through the commission to install a new fence, a much smaller project than the construction of the new ballroom.
The White House’s East Wing will be demolished “within days,” Trump administration officials confirmed to multiple outlets on Wednesday. This information was surprising because the administration has not sent plans for the new ballroom to the federal agency that regulates the construction of federal buildings.
Jeff Mason of Reuters asked Donald Trump to address the general astonishment that the entire East Wing is being demolished during a Wednesday interview with reporters in the Oval Office. The wing, which Trump characterized as a distinct structure, “was never thought of as being much; it was a very small building,” he claimed.
“Instead of permitting that to harm an extremely costly, exquisite structure,” he added. “We had to demolish the existing structure in order to complete it correctly. “.”.
Trump continued, “The way it was shown, it looked like we were touching the White House,” pointing to a model of the new ballroom on a table in front of him and a new building that leads to the ballroom where the East Wing once stood. We don’t go near the White House. “”.
Regarding the new building that will take the place of the East Wing, Trump remarked, “That’s a bridge, a glass bridge going from the White House to the ballroom.”.
The end product, according to Trump, is “going to be probably the finest ballroom ever built,” and he and a few of his friends are “paying for the ballroom 100 percent.”.
The entire East Wing will be demolished as part of the ballroom plans, according to a senior administration official quoted in the New York Times on Wednesday. Additionally, according to the official, the demolition should be completed this weekend.
According to two Trump officials who spoke to NBC News, the White House’s entire East Wing will be demolished “within days.”.
The National Capital Planning Commission, which normally authorizes and oversees construction on federal buildings, will receive plans, the White House told Reuters on Tuesday. Reporters recorded a backhoe tearing out sections of the White House’s exterior as demolition got underway earlier this week.
Late summer saw the release of plans for Trump’s 90,000-square-foot ballroom, which he claimed he would personally finance with $200 million. At the time, he claimed it was just another way to spend his money on this construction.
White House officials maintain that demolition is permitted even in the absence of commission approval. The commission’s head, Will Scharf, who was appointed by Trump and is also a White House staff secretary, stated in September that new construction can only be approved by the commission and that there is a distinction between demolition and rebuilding work.
A White House official told the Guardian that the National Planning Commission only needs permits for vertical construction and not for demolition. At the right time, permits will be turned in to the NPC. “”.
However, in a letter to the White House on Tuesday, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, a prominent non-profit organization dedicated to historic preservation that was established by Congress, informed the White House that plans for demolition were “legally required” to undergo public review and urged Trump to put a halt to demolition.
The group wrote, “We are extremely worried that the proposed new construction’s massing height will overpower the White House itself—it is 55,000 square feet—and may also permanently disturb the White House’s carefully balanced classical design with its two smaller, and lower, East and West Wings.”.
The White House undertook a commission to install a new fence during Trump’s first term, which was a far smaller undertaking than building the new ballroom.
“There’s a lot of fake outrage out there right now,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News on Tuesday in response to the criticism surrounding the demolition.
While many presidents have had similar dreams, President Trump is the one taking concrete action. He is also the main builder. “He was re-elected to this people’s house largely because he is good at building things,” Leavitt stated, pointing out that numerous presidents had altered the White House.
Trump claimed during the summer that new construction would not impact the current structure, which has drawn criticism.
The existing structure won’t be hampered. I’m a huge admirer of the existing building, and it will be close to it without touching it,” Trump stated.
