A new report says Trump's ballroom will ruin the White House, but he can build it anyway

"President Donald Trump's plans to add a ballroom to the White House would be bad for the design of the White House complex and grounds, according to a National Park Service (NPS) report. The report said the annex would "disrupt the historical continuity of the White House grounds and alter the architectural integrity of the easts side of the property." Still, Trump is clear for now to move ahead with his plans."

"The NPS's environmental assessment was released because the agency manages the White House, its grounds, and surrounding areas including Lafayette Square and sites in and around the Ellipse. The National Environmental Policy Act and Department of Interior regulations also compel the agency to. Their assessment found no significant environmental impact from building a ballroom and noted successive administrations have wanted a permanent, secure event space on White House grounds. But it also highlighted aesthetic and cultural concerns about Trump's plans. That might not matter."

"Trump replaces the original architect Trump confirmed on Dec. 4 to the Washington Post that he replaced the ballroom's original architect McCrery Architects with a new firm called Shalom Baranes Associates. The switch up came following reports that Trump and McCrery Architects CEO Jim McCrery II disagreed over the planned size of the new building. McCrery reportedly believed Trump's plans for a 90,000-square-foot ballroom would dwarf the 55,000-square-foot building of the main White House mansion."

A National Park Service assessment found that adding a ballroom annex would disrupt historical continuity and alter the architectural integrity of the East side of the White House grounds. The NPS released an environmental assessment because it manages the White House, Lafayette Square, and the Ellipse and because NEPA and Department of Interior regulations require review. The assessment found no significant environmental impact and noted successive administrations sought a permanent, secure event space on the grounds. The assessment nevertheless raised aesthetic and cultural concerns. Trump demolished the East Wing without outside approval and replaced architect McCrery with Shalom Baranes after size disagreements.

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