Planning commission approves White House ballroom design

Despite a judge's order to halt construction on the White House ballroom project this week, Washington DC advisory committee National Capitol Planning Commission has approved the design of the project.

In a Thursday afternoon meeting, National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC) Chairman William Scharf pushed back against public critique of the project in a lengthy defence, stating that the White House has grown in "fits and spurts" since its first century.

"The White House complex, in its first century, grew in fits and spurts, and it has continued to do so until the present day," said Scharf.

"My core point is that the White House is ever changing, ever evolving to meet the programmatic needs of an ever-changing and evolving United States presidency," he continued.

"Never been symmetrical"

"Any argument that relies on the idea that the White House is unchangeable or should be unchangeable flies in the face of the very history of the structure such critics claim they are trying to protect."

The chairman also pushed back against criticism of the asymmetry of the proposed new East Wing, which would be roughly three times the size of the current West Wing building, pointing to its growth throughout history.

"The White House complex as a whole has never been symmetrical since perhaps the 1830s, if even then," said Scharf.

The vote was passed via majority by the commission, with two abstentions, seven yes, two present votes, and one no by DC council chairman Phil Mendelson.

Mendelson continued to question the speed of the project's process, and also its size.

"It's just too large," he said during the statements. "If we can get the same program, but not as tall, not competing in height with the main structure and a condensed footprint, we are better for that."

Contrary to previous NCPC meetings, project architect Shalom Baranes Architects did not present plans and drawings of the proposed East Wing project, a 90,000 square feet (8,360 square metres) neoclassical building with a large ballroom for visiting dignitaries.

Instead, the commission reviewed a recently amended submission, which included changes announced earlier this week by President Trump during an Air Force One press briefing, in which Trump suggested the ballroom would be a "shed" for a military complex.

Vote only meaningful if Congress cares

The amended and now-approved project includes the removal of a grand staircase on the south side of the building. Its footprint remains the same.

Earlier this week, a federal judge ordered a temporary pause on construction on the entire project, deeming it unlawful on the basis that proper procedures were not followed during the approval and that it requires congressional approval.

The case was brought forth by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, which has also joined a slew of architectural organisations that have sued the Trump Administration over its renovations to the Kennedy Center.

Upon the news of the construction pause, President Trump pushed back.

"We built many things at the White House over the years," he told reporters in the Oval Office. "They don't get congressional approval."

The administration has 14 days to appeal the recent ruling. For now, the previous East Wing site will remain a construction site as the project is being deliberated legally.

"The Court held that the President needs Congress to authorise his plans before moving forward, so NCPC's vote is only meaningful now to the extent that Congress cares about their opinion," Greg Werkheiser, an attorney at Cultural Heritage Partners, told Dezeen.

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