A nonprofit organization charged by the U.S. Congress with helping preserve historic sites has sued the White House to stop construction of President Donald Trump’s new ballroom.
The National Trust for Historic Preservation filed the lawsuit Friday, arguing that the White House failed to request necessary reviews before demolishing the historic East Wing in October.
“No president is legally permitted to tear down parts of the White House without any review: not President Trump, not President Joe Biden, not anyone else,” the lawsuit says.
The White House has called the project an “exquisite and much-needed addition.”
The lawsuit represents the first major legal challenge to the ballroom project.
The organization is asking a federal court in Washington, D.C., to halt construction of the expansion until the White House “complies with the law by going through legally required review processes,” including a public comment period, according to a statement.
“The White House is arguably our country’s most evocative building and a globally recognized symbol of our powerful American ideals,” said Carol Quillen, president of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, a nonprofit organization created in 1949 by a congressional charter.
The group said it was “forced” to go to court after the White House ignored concerns it raised in October.
In the lawsuit, the group argues that the White House violated the law by beginning construction without submitting plans to the National Capital Planning Commission, failing to request an environmental assessment of the project and refusing to seek congressional authorization.
It also alleges that Trump is violating the United States Constitution, “which reserves to Congress the right to dispose of and make all rules respecting property belonging to the United States.”
The White House said in a statement in response to Friday’s lawsuit that “President Trump has full legal authority to modernize, renovate and beautify the White House, just as all of his predecessors did.”
The east wing was demolished in October to make way for Trump’s multimillion-dollar ballroom, which he says is being funded by private donors.
The proposed project has since expanded from a 500-person capacity ballroom to a space that can accommodate 1,350 guests.
The White House had previously promised that its construction plan would be evaluated by the National Capital Planning Commission before construction began, but the lawsuit claims the site is already undergoing extensive construction.
The lawsuit describes the White House grounds as “a bustling construction site, with dozens of workers driving piles, stockpiling materials and amassing heavy machinery.”
“Just last week, a towering construction crane was erected on the White House grounds, and President Trump said work on the Ballroom Project was audible all night.”
Last week, the White House replaced the architect who was overseeing the project. The previous lead architect had reportedly clashed with Trump officials over the size and scope of the expansion.
On Thursday night, Trump, a former real estate developer, promised that the ballroom would be built before he leaves office in 2028.
“You know, for 150 years they’ve been trying to make a ballroom,” Trump said at the Congressional Ball.
“They never put it together, but we did it. In a very short period of time, like about a year and a half, you’ll have the best ballroom in the country.”
