[Salon] How Trump’s ballroom will dwarf the White House

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President Donald Trump’s project to build an expansive new White House ballroom officially broke ground Monday. Crews tore down the East Wing in only four days, despite Trump’s claim that the ballroom wouldn’t interfere with the existing building. There has been little public information released about the layout or design of the addition, which would be the largest ever, with a planned size almost double the footprint of the 55,000-square-foot main section of the White House.

Former East Wing

WEST WING

Executive

residence

Rose

Garden

Movie theater

Calligraphy workshop

SOUTH LAWN

First lady’s office

Visitor

entrance

EAST WING

Until this week the East Wing was home to a movie theater, offices for the first lady and calligraphy offices where all official invitations were created. It was also the main visitor entrance, including for public tours of the White House. All tours have been suspended indefinitely, according to the White House website.

The East Wing will be replaced by the ballroom, offices for the first lady and her staff, and new “guest suites” for the “President’s White House Guests,” according to a project description on the résumé of lead architect James McCrery II. The White House would not confirm whether the new guest suites and offices were included in the 90,000-square foot estimate.

Through an analysis of architectural renderings, photos and satellite imagery, The Washington Post reconstructed an estimate of the overall footprint of the new East Wing.

New East Wing

WEST WING

Executive

residence

Rose

Garden

East Colonnade

SOUTH LAWN

90,000-

square-foot

ballroom

Neoclassical

facade

NEW EAST WING

The east facade will be replaced with a neoclassical entrance. Trump, who issued an executive order dictating new federal buildings be designed in classical and traditional styles, tapped McCrery, a classicist architect, to create the ballroom.

WHITE HOUSE

EAST SIDE OF BALLROOM

Trump said this week that the ballroom will seat almost 1,000 people, up from an earlier estimate of about 650. The White House announced plans in January, initially projecting the expansion backed by private donors would cost $200 million. Trump has since revised that figure to upward of $300 million.

BALLROOM INTERIOR

Seating for

1,000 guests

South

terrace

White House/McCrery Architects

The president has already made substantial changes to the West Wing, including adding custom-made gold leaf finishes in the Oval Office and paving over the Rose Garden. The East Wing project is expected to be completed “long before the end of President Trump’s term.”

(Video: Aaron Steckelberg/The Washington Post)

What readers are saying

The comments overwhelmingly criticize the decision to replace the East Wing with a new ballroom and guest suites, describing it as a gaudy, tacky, and unnecessary vanity project that reflects poorly on President Trump's taste and priorities. Many commenters express concern about... Show more

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