Trump considering adding a floor to West Wing as part of White House renovation plan

President Donald Trump is considering another addition to his White House renovation plan, this time to the West Wing, where the Oval Office is located.

The president is weighing adding another level to the one-story building, constructing it over the area where the White House press room is located.

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Doing so would give it symmetry in height with the White House itself and the still-being-built ballroom, an official said.

But it could also result in the displacement of the journalists who cover the administration, should they need to be located elsewhere during construction.

Architect Shalom Baranes revealed the plan at Thursday’s meeting of the National Capital Planning Commission.

“We’re considering the idea of a modest one story addition to the West Wing,” he said.

He offered no additional details or drawings of the plans and the White House didn’t respond to a request for more information. 

But the idea may have been percolating for months. President Trump, in August, was spotted walking on the roof of the West Wing. At the time, the president said he was “taking a little walk” but he did hint there may be future plans to come. 

Trump began constructing his new ballroom in October, when demolition began on the East Wing. He has long railed about the lack of proper entertaining space in the White House. The state dining room can only hold about 120 people.

The project has come under fire. The National Trust for Historic Preservation is suing to stop construction, arguing the Trump administration violated federal laws by proceeding before submitting the project for the independent reviews, congressional approval and public comment.

Thursday’s hearing was the first public presentation of the president’s plans for the White House complex. Officials addressed some of the biggest questions around the project, pointed to their historic preservation efforts and noted that much of the complex needs to be upgraded to keep pace with infrastructure and security requirements.

Baranes displayed renderings of the ballroom and addressed concerns about the visual aspect. He said the 89,000 square foot ballroom will be the same height as the two-story White House residence, which is about 55,000 square feet.

Adding another story to the West Wing would make the three parts of the White House complex equal, he noted.

“The reason to think about that is so that we would reinstate the symmetry around the central pavilion of the White House. We have not looked at that at all, yet. We hope to do so in the future,” he said.

The new structure will contain a 22,000 square foot ballroom and the rest of the space will house offices, including a suite for First Lady Melania Trump, and a movie theater.

A two-story colonnade will be built to connect the new structure to the existing White House.

President Trump said the $400 million project will be funded by himself and private donors.

Most of the 12 commissioners seemed in agreement with the plan. 

“I fully expect that the Commission will approve this project,” Will Scharf, the chairman of the commission, told reporters after the meeting. Scharf also serves as White House staff secretary. He’s the person who hands Trump official orders to sign.

He predicted enthusiasm about the project will grow as more details about it are shared. And he argued the project is a necessary measure to upgrade the complex.

“I have mold in the air in my office. We have mice and critters in the walls,” he said. “I know the folks who worked in the East Wing had similar concerns there. So this is a long overdue modernization project.”