Congressional approval, oversight key steps for Trump's ballroom

May 20 (UPI) -- President Donald Trump's plan to build a new White House ballroom remains in the air as preservation advocates urge for Congressional approval and oversight.

Calls for construction of a 90,000 square foot ballroom built on the East Wing of the White House ramped up after an alleged assassination attempt during the White House Correspondents' Dinner on April 25. How much the ballroom would cost and how it would be funded remain in question.

The National Trust for Historic Preservation filed a lawsuit in December against the Trump administration over the ongoing construction project. It has asked that the project be stopped until the administration goes through the legally mandated review process with a public comment period and complies with relevant laws.

U.S. District Judge Richard Leon ordered above-ground construction to halt on April 1. The Circuit Court of Appeals is scheduled for a hearing in the case on June 5.

"Our perspective is that the demolition of part of the White House and construction of something else in its place requires a series of approvals by law," Carol Quillen, CEO of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, told UPI. "One step in that is approval from Congress. When President [Harry] Truman fully renovated the White House, there was a bipartisan congressional committee that oversaw that."

Trump's original proposal, a $200 million project funded by donors, has increased to an estimated $400 million project. Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, has proposed a funding bill that includes $1 billion for security improvements to the ballroom, funded by taxpayer dollars.

The Senate parliamentarian struck down the proposal to earmark $1 billion for ballroom security enhancements on Monday.

As the president continues to pursue the project, having demolished the East Wing in October, the Trump administration faces lawsuits challenging his approach to the project. Specifically, the lawsuits cite a lack of Congressional approval when making significant permanent changes to a historic national site.

The code of the District of Columbia states that congressional approval is required when erecting "on any reservation, park, or public grounds, of the United States within the District of Columbia, any building or structure."

"Washington, D.C., is a planned city, from the very beginning, when George Washington chose an urban planner to design the city," Quillen said. "The layout of the city, the relationship of the Capitol to the White House, the open vista and public nature of the National Mall, design features that say to us 'this is a democratic republic where power resides with the people.'"

There have been many renovations to the White House since it was constructed in 1792. While some of those projects were met with pushback, including Truman's renovation or first lady Jacqueline Kennedy's addition of the Kennedy Rose Garden, Congress approved appropriations for those projects.

The ballroom project is just one that Trump has ordered in the nation's capital. He has also announced a statue garden, the "Garden of American Heroes," is to be built in West Potomac Park.

Trump also directed the repainting of the basin of the Lincoln Memorial reflecting pool. The Cultural Landscape Foundation filed a lawsuit against the administration over that project earlier this month.

Quillen said each of these projects trigger different regulatory measures. The Committee for the Preservation of the White House and the National Capital Planning Commission are key oversight bodies that are typically involved in overseeing such projects.

The National Capital Planning Commission voted to approve the ballroom project in April.

Following the attack on the White House Correspondents' Dinner, held at the Washington Hilton, security concerns have been raised as a reason to complete the ballroom project.

Justin Miller, associate professor of practice of cyberstudies and director of MS of the cyber security online program at the University of Tulsa, told UPI there are advantages to building a special site to host events involving the president and high-ranking government officials.

"The primary advantage of a purpose-built ballroom is operational control," Miller said. "Anytime a major event can be moved into a facility specifically designed with security in mind, planners gain advantages in access control, screening, communications, evacuation planning and layered protection compared to adapting an outside venue for temporary use."

Along with the security advantages of having a dedicated event space, it may also create new challenges.

"While an on-site ballroom may improve operational control for some events, bringing larger gatherings closer to the White House also introduces additional considerations involving crowd size, access management, insider risk and the consequences of a missed threat occurring near a highly sensitive location," Miller said.

"A purpose-built ballroom may improve operational control for certain White House events, but it does not eliminate the broader reality that protecting presidents and senior officials requires managing risk across a wide range of environments and public-facing events."

The ballroom is planned to seat 650 people.

"When protecting the president or senior government officials, planners are not simply securing a room," Miller said. "They are securing an ecosystem. Every venue is evaluated through multiple layers of risk, including physical security, access control, emergency response, communications, transportation routes, medical contingencies. Security is not defined by the building alone. It depends on the people, planning, intelligence and execution behind it."

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This story was originally published May 20, 2026 at 10:41 AM.