Latest news with #ballroom
BBC News
27 minutes ago
- Politics
- BBC News
White House announces $200m new ballroom - a longtime Trump wish
The White House has announced plans to build a $200m (£151m) new ballroom, fulfilling an often-repeated desire of US President Donald Trump. The new ballroom will be built alongside a "modernised" East Wing of the White House, which currently houses the offices of First Lady Melania Trump and other key White House posts. The money will be donated directly by Trump and other so-far anonymous donors, with work beginning in September, according to Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt. Trump has repeatedly promised to build a "beautiful" ballroom at the White House, and in 2016 offered to pay $100m during Barack Obama's administration - which the then-President rejected. In a briefing for reporters at the White House on Thursday, Leavitt said that the "much needed and exquisite addition" to the White House will be approximately 90,000 (8,360 sq m) with a seating capacity of about many formal White House functions are held in the White House's East Room, which can seat approximately 200 people. The new ballroom, Leavitt added, would also eliminate the need for a "large and unsightly tent" to be installed for state dinners and other large events - which sometimes include world leaders. According to Leavitt, construction is expected to be completed "long before" the end of Trump's term in office in January 2029."The President and the Trump White House are fully committed to working with the appropriate organisations to preserving the special history of the White House, while building a beautiful ballroom that can be enjoyed by future administrations and generations of Americans to come," Chief of Staff Susie Wiles said in a statement. Renderings provided by the White House show that the ballroom will be similar architecturally to the rest of the White House, with a lavish interior including chandeliers and ornate columns. Offices currently housed in the East Wing of the White House adjacent to the construction - including that of First Lady Melania Trump - will be temporarily re-located. President Trump has repeatedly voiced his wishes for a new ballroom as part of renovations to the White House, which has already seen the installation of two large flagpoles, new gold decorations in the Oval Office and the bulldozing and paving over of the famed Rose Garden. "There's never been a President that's good at ballrooms," Trump said at an event at the White House on Thursday. "I'm good at building things."Trump added that "they've always had to get tents" for large events at the White House, which he described as a disaster. "It's not a pretty sight."Earlier this week during a Scotland meeting with European Council President Ursula Van der Leyen, Trump told her that "we're building a great ballroom at the White House." "No president knew how to build a ballroom," Trump said while sitting in another ballroom at his Turnberry golf resort. "I could take this one, drop it right down there, and it would be beautiful."In 2016, when on the campaign trail during the administration of Barack Obama, Trump famously offered to contribute $100m for the construction of a new ballroom for the White House to use to host events. At the time, then-Press Secretary Josh Earnest said that the suggestion was "not something that was at all seriously considered". "I'm not sure that it would be appropriate to have a shiny gold Trump sign…on any part of the White House," Earnest told reporters.
The Independent
an hour ago
- Business
- The Independent
A new $200M White House ballroom to break ground in September, the first major upgrade since 1948
The White House on Thursday announced that construction on a new $200 million ballroom will begin in September and be ready before President Donald Trump 's term ends in early 2029. It will be the latest change introduced to what's known as 'The People's House' since the Republican president returned to office in January. It also will be the first structural change to the Executive Mansion since the addition of the Truman balcony in 1948. Trump has substantially redecorated the Oval Office through the addition of golden flourishes and cherubs, presidential portraits and other items and installed massive flagpoles to fly the American flag on the north and south lawns. Workers are currently finishing a project to replace the lawn in the Rose Garden with stone. Trump for months has been promising to build a ballroom, saying the White House doesn't have space big enough to hold large events and scoffing at the notion of hosting heads of state and other guests in tents on the lawn as past administrations have done for state dinners attended by hundreds of guests. The East Room, the largest room in the the White House, can accommodate about 200 people. As he and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen held talks in the ballroom of the hotel on his golf course in Turnberry, Scotland, on Sunday, Trump praised the space and said it was what he envisioned adding to the White House. 'The White House has wanted a ballroom for 150 years, but they never had a real estate person. You know, nobody, no president knew how to build a ballroom,' he said, harkening back to his early career in real estate and construction. He said the Turnberry ballroom had been 'quite the success' since it opened a short time ago. That ballroom 'boasts a generous capacity of up to 500 guests,' according to the hotel's website. 'I was just saying I could take this one, drop it right down there and it would be beautiful,' Trump said. 'This is exactly what they've wanted.' The 90,000-square-foot ballroom, announced on Thursday, will be built where the East Wing currently sits and will have a seated capacity of 650 people. The East Wing is home to several offices, including the first lady's. Those offices will be temporarily relocated during construction while that wing of the building is 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 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. Trump has chosen 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.
Telegraph
an hour ago
- Politics
- Telegraph
White House to undergo £150m facelift with new ballroom
The White House is undergoing a $200m (£150m) facelift, constructing a new ballroom in the east wing. Work on the sprawling 90,000sq ft event space will begin in September and will eliminate the need for a 'large and unsightly tent' usually used to host diners at formal gatherings, Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, announced on Thursday. Donald Trump, who has already implemented his polarising trademark interior style throughout the White House, will cover the cost of the project alongside other donors. 'The White House State ballroom will be a much needed and exquisite addition of approximately 90,000 total square feet of innately designed and carefully crafted space with a seated capacity of 650 people, which is a significant increase from the 200-person seated capacity in the East Room of the White House,' Mrs Leavitt told reporters. The project is expected to be completed before the end of Mr Trump's term in January 2029.
Al Jazeera
an hour ago
- Entertainment
- Al Jazeera
White House getting new $200M ballroom
White House getting new $200M ballroom NewsFeed The White House has announced plans for a new $200m ballroom, with construction to start in September. The 90,000-square-foot space will replace the East Wing and seat up to 650 guests. It will be paid for by Trump and other donors. Video Duration 01 minutes 22 seconds 01:22 Video Duration 02 minutes 54 seconds 02:54 Video Duration 01 minutes 30 seconds 01:30 Video Duration 01 minutes 26 seconds 01:26 Video Duration 01 minutes 13 seconds 01:13 Video Duration 00 minutes 47 seconds 00:47 Video Duration 02 minutes 33 seconds 02:33
Washington Post
an hour ago
- Business
- Washington Post
Trump plans $200M overhaul of East Wing in significant change to White House
President Donald Trump, a longtime developer, is overseeing the construction of a $200 million, 90,000-square-foot ballroom that will remake the East Wing of the White House, effecting one of the biggest changes to 'the People's House' in a century. The White House State Ballroom will seat 650 people, more than triple the capacity of the East Room, which is currently the largest room at the White House. Construction is set to begin in September and be done 'long before' the end of Trump's second term, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said.
