WASHINGTON — On Thursday, the White House announced that a huge new $200 million ballroom will be constructed starting in September, with plans to complete it before President Donald Trump’s term concludes in 2029.
This upcoming addition to “The People’s House” marks the latest transformation since the Republican president’s return to office in January. It will be the first significant change to the Executive Mansion since the Truman balcony was added in 1948.
President Trump has given the Oval Office a lavish makeover, incorporating gold accents, cherubs, and presidential portraits, alongside raising large flagpoles on the lawns to display the American flag. Additionally, workers are nearly finished with replacing the Rose Garden’s lawn with stone.
For several months, Trump has advocated for a ballroom, citing the White House’s lack of space for large events, and rejecting the previous administrations’ practice of hosting state dinners under tents on the lawn for hundreds of guests.
The East Room, the largest room in the the White House, can accommodate about 200 people.
Trump said he’s been planning the construction for some time.
“They’ve wanted a ballroom at the White House for over 150 years, but no previous president has excelled at building them,” Trump told reporters on Thursday. “I know how to build well, and we’ll do it efficiently and timely. It will be top-notch and stunning.”
He said the new ballroom would not interfere with the mansion itself.
He added that the new ballroom “will be close by but won’t touch the existing structure. It will show complete respect for the building, which I’m deeply fond of. It’s my favorite place.”
Trump said the ballroom will serve administrations to come.
“It’ll be a great legacy project,” he said. “I think it will be really beautiful.”
The 90,000-square-foot ballroom will be built where the East Wing sits with a seated capacity of 650 people. The East Wing houses several offices, including the first lady’s. Those offices will be temporarily relocated during construction and that wing of the building will be modernized and renovated, said White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt.
“Nothing will be torn down,” she said.
White House chief of staff Susie Wiles said the president, whose early career was in real estate and construction, and his White House are “fully committed” to working with the appropriate organizations to preserve the mansion’s “special history.”
“President Trump is a builder at heart and has an extraordinary eye for detail,” Wiles said in a statement.
Leavitt said at her briefing Thursday that Trump and other donors have committed to raising the approximately $200 million in construction costs. She did not name any of the other donors.
Renderings of what the future ballroom will look like were posted on the White House website.
The president chose McCrery Architects, based in Washington, as lead architect on the project. The construction team will be led by Clark Construction. Engineering will be provided by AECOM.
Trump also has another project in mind. He told NBC News in an interview that he intends to replace what he said was a “terribly” remodeled bathroom in the famous Lincoln Bedroom with one that is closer in style to the 19th century.
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