US EditionJudge says he is unlikely to immediately halt Trump's $300 million White House ballroom project
Judge Leon permits above-ground ballroom construction but limits below-ground work to prevent irreversible changes, requiring plan submissions by year-end in a $300 million project.
- By December 16, 2025, U.S. District Judge Richard J. Leon denied the National Trust for Historic Preservation's motion to temporarily block ballroom construction but barred construction crews from building below-ground structures for two weeks.
- The National Trust for Historic Preservation sued last week, alleging demolition and work began without submitting plans to the National Capital Planning Commission and the Commission of Fine Arts and seeking an emergency pause until Congress authorizes and environmental reviews occur.
- Crews have already demolished much of the East Wing, while U.S. District Judge Richard J. Leon warned underground work set to finish in coming months must not dictate the ballroom's size, and Justice Department attorney Adam Gustafson said designs remain "in progress".
- The court set the administration to meet with the National Capital Planning Commission by the end of December and scheduled hearings for mid‑January and the second week of January.
- The administration says the $300 million White House ballroom has National Park Service backing, expects completion by summer 2028, and argues executive renovations are beyond court review.
101 Articles
101 Articles
In his second term, Donald Trump is showing an obsession with the White House—the building, not the institution to which it serves as the seat—which far surpasses the precedent of his first presidency. The Republican has redecorated his stays based on golden moldings and changing squares and putting new ones. He has also remodeled bathrooms and has begun an unprecedented expansion with the demolition of the east wing to raise in that flank of th…
Federal Judge Allows White House Ballroom Construction to Continue… For Now.
PULSE POINTSWHAT HAPPENED: A federal judge declined to temporarily halt the construction of President Donald J. Trump’s White House ballroom following a lawsuit from the National Trust for Historic Preservation.WHO WAS INVOLVED: U.S. District Court Judge Richard Leon, the Trump administration, and the National Trust for Historic Preservation.WHEN & WHERE: The decision was announced on Tuesday; construction plans involve the former White House Ea…
Judge Lets White House Ballroom Work Proceed
A judge says construction of the White House ballroom can continue, for now. US District Judge Richard Leon on Tuesday rejected an emergency bid from the National Trust for Historic Preservation to temporarily halt President Trump's $300 million project, Politico reports. Leon ruled that letting construction continue below ground over...
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