The entire East Wing of the White House will be demolished within days, two Trump administration officials said.
Construction crews began demolishing parts of the structure on Monday and the structure will be fully demolished by the end of the week, officials told the BBC’s US news partner CBS.
This marks a significant expansion of the construction project announced by President Donald Trump last summer. He previously said the $250m (£186m) addition to the White House ballroom would not “disrupt the current building”.
The White House has served as the historic home of American presidents for two centuries. The east building was constructed in 1902 and last renovated in 1942.
President Trump announced in a social media post Monday that construction had begun on the “much-needed” ballroom space, saying the “foundation has been broken.”
“For more than 150 years, every president has dreamed of having a White House ballroom that could accommodate people for large parties or state visits,” he wrote.
He said the East Wing is attached to the main building but “completely separate” from the White House.
Trump administration officials told CBS that while there was always a need to modernize the East Wing to increase security and technology, it became clear during the planning process that the best option was to demolish the entire East Wing.
President Trump said the construction was “music to my ears.”
“You’ll hear the beautiful sounds of construction in the background,” he told Republican senators at the White House on Tuesday. “When I hear those sounds, I think of money.”
His comments came after the National Trust for Historic Preservation, a Washington nonprofit that protects America’s historic sites, sent a letter to White House officials expressing “deep concerns” about the project.
The trust asked President Trump to halt demolition, arguing that the White House is a national historic landmark and that officials should undergo a public review process for the ballroom plans.
