President Donald Trump’s ambitious $300 million ballroom project at the White House just took a sharp turn with a new architect stepping in to steer the ship.
The saga involves a hefty addition to the People’s House, originally led by James McCrery of McCrery Architects, now handed over to Shalom Baranes amid disputes over scale and capacity, while Democrats cry foul over demolition plans and perceived overreach.
This grand ballroom vision, fully backed by private donors, kicked off with McCrery at the helm, tasked with designing a space to host 650 guests.
But trouble brewed when Trump pushed for a larger venue, clashing with McCrery’s initial plans, creating tension over the project’s direction.
Concerns also mounted in the White House about McCrery’s small firm missing critical deadlines, questioning whether they could handle a venture of this magnitude.
By October, as reported by the Washington Post, McCrery stepped back from leading the project, though sources say the split was amicable, with him staying on as a consultant.
Enter Shalom Baranes, a seasoned architect with a resume boasting heavyweights like the General Services Administration’s headquarters and the Pentagon’s post-9/11 renovation, now tasked with realizing Trump’s dream.
“As we begin to transition into the next stage of development on the White House Ballroom, the Administration is excited to share that the highly talented Shalom Baranes has joined the team of experts to carry out President Trump’s vision on building what will be the greatest addition to the White House since the Oval Office — the White House Ballroom,” said White House spokesman Davis Ingle in a statement.
While the administration touts Baranes as a game-changer, one wonders if this shift signals deeper cracks in planning—or just a pragmatic pivot to get the job done right.
Meanwhile, the White House isn’t waiting around, already starting demolition on the East Wing, a move breaking from tradition as federal projects typically await approval from the National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC).
Trump’s team argues demolition doesn’t require NCPC oversight since the commission’s role is limited to new construction, a technicality that has raised eyebrows among critics.
On the political front, Democrats are up in arms, slamming the project as a power grab by Trump, with some calling for legislative roadblocks to slow the bulldozers.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) has gone as far as introducing the “No Palaces Act,” aiming to force immediate NCPC review of any White House demolition plans.
“It’s not Donald Trump’s house, it’s the people’s house,” Blumenthal told The Post, a line dripping with populist sentiment that ignores the private funding behind this endeavor.
Sure, accountability matters, but let’s not pretend this is anything more than political theater—Democrats seizing a chance to paint Trump as a monarch while a ballroom, funded by donors, hardly equates to a personal palace.
