Historic preservationists are suing to immediately halt the project.
By Dan Diamond and Jonathan Edwards, The Washington PostA view of the White House and East Wing construction, on Nov. 26. MUST CREDIT: Matt McClain/The Washington Post Trump officials fending off a legal challenge over the president’s planned ballroom argue the project is a matter of national security, in court filings that provide the most detailed picture yet of the controversial White House addition.
Department of Justice lawyers made public closely held planning documents and internal administration reviews as they made their case ahead of a showdown in a D.C. courtroom Tuesday afternoon with historic preservationists seeking an emergency halt to the project. “Any pause in construction, even temporarily, would … hamper the Secret Service’s ability to meet its statutory obligations and protective mission,” Matthew Quinn, deputy director of the Secret Service, wrote in a court filing predicting months of underground construction were needed to replace security infrastructure after President Donald Trump tore down the East Wing annex in October.The Trump administration has asked U.S. District Judge Richard J. Leon, an appointee of President George W. Bush, to hear its arguments about national security in private. A presidential emergency-operations bunker had been located below the now-demolished East Wing for decades. The White House has repeatedly declined to comment on the fate of that bunker amid its ongoing ballroom construction, citing security concerns. Trump and his deputies have also shared few details about the ballroom itself, such as the 90,000-square-foot addition’s height - listed in court filings Monday as potentially 55 feet high. The White House’s mansion is about 60 feet high on its north side and 70 feet high on the south side, and Trump and his former chief architect on the project have argued over ensuring the addition doesn’t dominate the landscape - with the president pushing to go big. Trump officials also said that they expect the project to be completed in summer 2028, the most specific timeline yet offered by the administration. The administration’s national security arguments inject a new dimension into the months-long fight over the ballroom, with lawmakers and other critics insisting that Trump does not have the authority to unilaterally remake a building known as the “People’s House.” Historic preservationists, Democrats and some conservatives have ripped the president for demolishing the East Wing before receiving approval to build the ballroom from a pair of federal review panels, the National Capital Planning Commission and the Commission of Fine Arts. Members of Congress have also called on the White House to detail what was promised to private donors who are funding the $300 million project. Many of the donors identified by the administration - including Amazon, Lockheed Martin and Palantir - have business before the administration, such as seeking future federal contracts or eyeing potential acquisitions. The National Trust for Historic Preservation, a nonprofit group charged by Congress with helping to preserve historical buildings, on Friday sued the administration and sought an emergency halt to construction, arguing that the White House had failed to undertake legally required reviews as well as obtain authorization from Congress before demolishing the East Wing. “The public - the American people - should have an opportunity to weigh in on projects affecting that iconic building,” Carol Quillen, the National Trust’s CEO, told The Washington Post last week. Justice Department lawyers in court filings said that the administration is preparing to submit its ballroom plans to the federal review panels, which they argue would render the National Trust’s claims moot. They said aboveground construction is not slated to begin until April 2026 and defended other actions as within the president’s authority. Allowing the court to “intervene and insert itself into ongoing architectural and design processes for the East Wing ballroom” would be against the public’s interest in allowing a president to make changes to the White House, Adam Gustafson, principal deputy assistant attorney general, and other lawyers told the court.Leon has previously ruled against the Trump administration, concluding earlier this year that the president’s executive order aimed at the law firm WilmerHale was unconstitutional. The administration’s filings offer the most extensive view yet at a project that Trump has closely managed - and that has often been described in only vague terms by the White House. According to administration documents and court filings, officials began meeting this spring to consider building a ballroom, determined by August that the East Wing was likely to be torn down as a result, and anticipate completing the project in the summer of 2028, in the final year of Trump’s term. Officials also acknowledged that the project “would introduce both adverse and beneficial effects” to the White House grounds, according to a review conducted by the National Park ServiceThe ballroom would “dominate the eastern portion of the site, creating a visual imbalance with the more modestly scaled West Wing and Executive Mansion,” officials wrote, adding that the East Wing had been “integral to the White House since 1942.” But they also ticked off the main benefit they believe the ballroom would bring to the White House: a more seamless and dignified setting for large gatherings. In doing so, administrations would be able to end the past practice of pitching large tents for such occasions, which have damaged the South Lawn, they said. The Park Service concluded the building would have “no significant impact” on the surrounding environment, decided a more extensive review was not needed and gave the project their implicit blessing. The administration started work in September.Tammy Stidham, a National Park Service official who sits on the National Capital Planning Commission, told the court that White House officials on Monday reached out to set up a preliminary meeting with NCPC staff. That commission is now led by Trump allies, including the president’ staff secretary. John Stanwich, another National Park Service official, said the White House is planning to engage with the Commission on Fine Arts once that panel has a quorum, and that the administration is planning to nominate new members to the commission. Trump in October fired the CFA’s members. Stanwich also laid out work plans for the ballroom building in the coming months. Clark Construction, a contractor on the project, finished aboveground demolition earlier this month and expects to complete subterranean demolition by the end of the year, Stanwich told the court. In January, crews plan to start work on footings and underground structural concrete that will anchor and support the ballroom. Meanwhile, architects are still working to finalize the plans for the building itself. The General Services Administration, which was also sued by the National Trust, disclaimed any role in the ballroom construction. “GSA has taken no actions, and has no plans to take any actions, to contract for the planning, design, or construction of the proposed ballroom,” Andrew Heller, a senior GSA official, told the court.
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