Demolition work to make way for President Donald Trump’s proposed new ballroom off the East Wing of the White House can begin without approval from the federal planning commission that vets construction of government buildings, the commission’s chair said Thursday.
Will Scharf, who was appointed by Trump and also serves as White House staff secretary, told a public meeting of the National Capital Planning Commission that the board does not have jurisdiction over demolition or site-preparation work on federal property. "What we deal with is essentially construction, vertical build," Scharf said, distinguishing demolition from the commission’s oversight responsibilities.
Scharf described the planned ballroom as "one of the most exciting construction projects in the modern history of" Washington as he spoke during the only public meeting of the commission scheduled before crews are expected to break ground on the project. The ballroom is estimated to cost about $200 million and would encompass roughly 90,000 square feet, a size that administration officials say will significantly alter the look and scale of both the East and West Wings.
The National Capital Planning Commission is charged with approving construction work and major renovations to government buildings in the Washington area. Scharf’s comments signal that preparatory work such as demolition and site clearing could proceed without the commission’s formal approval, while future vertical construction and major renovation proposals would still fall under its purview.
Officials have provided limited public detail about the project’s full design, timeline and approvals process. Scharf’s remarks were made during a scheduled public session that, according to commission materials, was the only such meeting before physical work on the site is expected to begin.
The commission’s authority typically covers new construction and significant changes to federal facilities within the National Capital Region, including reviews of design, scale and impact on the surrounding urban environment. By drawing a distinction between demolition and vertical construction, Scharf framed the initial phase of the ballroom project as outside the body’s regulatory remit.
Representatives of the White House and the commission did not immediately provide additional comment Thursday beyond Scharf’s public statements. The project has been presented by the administration as a priority development on the White House grounds, with officials emphasizing its scale and prospective functions.
Any future submissions for construction or renovation of the building would be subject to the commission’s review process, which considers federal, district and broader planning policies for Washington. The scheduling of only one public meeting in the days before demolition underscored the compressed public-oversight timetable ahead of crews being expected to break ground.
The debate over the scope of the commission’s jurisdiction illustrates the procedural questions that can arise when major changes are proposed for federal properties in the capital. Scharf’s comments provide the commission’s current interpretation of where preliminary site work falls in that oversight framework, leaving subsequent construction approvals to follow the agency’s established review procedures.