The White Home has paused public excursions amid building of the ballroom within the complicated. Plans for the ballroom, which can start building in September, had been introduced on July 31.
“New tour bookings were paused proactively while a collaborative group of White House, U.S. Secret Service, National Park Service and Executive Residence staff work to determine the best way to ensure public access to the White House as this project begins and for the duration of construction,” Nicholas Clemens, communications director for first woman Melania Trump, advised Fox Information Digital, which first reported the pause on Aug. 7.
“There have been zero tour cancellations due to the addition of the State Ballroom.”
A White Home official confirmed to The Epoch Instances that the excursions are on pause whereas discussions are ongoing.
White Home excursions resumed in February following the presidential transition.
“For 150 years, presidents, administrations, and White House staff have longed for a large event space on the White House complex that can hold substantially more guests than currently allowed,” mentioned White Home press secretary Karoline Leavitt throughout a press briefing.
“President [Donald] Trump has expressed his commitment to solving this problem on behalf of future administrations and the American people.”
No taxpayer funds will go towards the ballroom. As an alternative, it will likely be funded by Trump and different non-public donors.
The ballroom will be capable of match 650 folks in an area that can embody 90,000 sq. ft. At present, solely 200 folks might be seated within the East Room, the place many social occasions on the White Home are held.
The East Wing, the place the ballroom can be positioned, additionally homes the primary woman’s workplace.
“In recent weeks, President Trump has held several meetings with members of the White House staff, the National Park Service, the White House Military Office, and the United States Secret Service to discuss design features and planning,” Leavitt mentioned.
Whereas the ballroom won’t be linked to the White Home itself, “its theme and architectural heritage will be almost identical,” Leavitt mentioned.
“President Trump is a builder at heart and has an extraordinary eye for detail,” White Home Chief of Employees Susie Wiles mentioned in a assertion.
“The president and the Trump White House are fully committed to working with the appropriate organizations to preserve the special history of the White House while building a beautiful ballroom that can be enjoyed by future administrations and generations of Americans to come in the White House.”
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