The National Trust for Historic Preservation filed a lawsuit against President Donald Trump and federal agencies on Dec. 12 over the ballroom construction project at the White House.
The National Trust is also asking for an injunction to halt work on the project “until the necessary federal commissions have reviewed and approved the project’s plans; adequate environmental review has been conducted; and Congress has authorized the Ballroom’s construction,” according to the complaint.
The National Trust describes itself in the complaint as a private, charitable, educational nonprofit corporation that Congress chartered in 1949. Its purpose is “to further the historic preservation policy of the United States and to promote the public’s awareness of and ability to comment on any activity that might damage or destroy our nation’s architectural heritage.” The trust has filed preservation lawsuits against several presidential administrations, the complaint said.
The lawsuit lists several federal agencies and those who head them as defendants.
The defendants are: the National Park Service and its acting director, Jessica Bowron; John Stanwich, superintendent of the White House and President’s Park; the Department of the Interior and its secretary, Doug Burgum; the General Services Administration and its acting administrator, Michael Rigas; and Trump.
The complaint said the demolition of the East Wing of the White House to make room for the ballroom facility began in late October without congressional approval or approval from federal commissions responsible for development oversight in the nation’s capital. The federal government did not carry out required environmental studies, nor did it give the public an opportunity for comment, the complaint said.
“Within days, the East Wing and its colonnade—a version of which was first built on the site during the presidency of Thomas Jefferson—were completely destroyed,” the complaint states.
Recently, a large construction crane was erected on White House grounds, and Trump has said that work on the project was “audible all night,” the complaint said.
“No president is legally allowed to tear down portions of the White House without any review whatsoever—not President Trump, not President Biden, and not anyone else,“ it reads. ”And no president is legally allowed to construct a ballroom on public property without giving the public the opportunity to weigh in.”
The Trump administration has maintained that the ballroom project is lawful.
The complaint stated that it is not unusual for even minor structures planned for the White House grounds to be subjected to extensive review. For example, in 2016, the National Park Service submitted plans to the National Capital Planning Commission for a new perimeter fence around the White House. In 2019, during Trump’s first term, the National Park Service filed plans with the commission about a proposal to replace a small building on the grounds with a new tennis pavilion.
The ballroom project violates several federal statutes, including the Administrative Procedure Act and the National Environmental Policy Act, the complaint argues.
The complaint also alleges that the ballroom project violates the separation of powers doctrine and the U.S. Constitution’s property clause, which gives Congress authority over federal property.
The property clause reads in part, “The Congress shall have Power to dispose of and make all needful Rules and Regulations respecting the Territory or other Property belonging to the United States.”
The Department of Justice, which represents federal officials in court, did not respond to a request for comment from The Epoch Times.
