Architects raise alarm over White House ballroom in NYT deep dive

President Trump’s controversial plans for a new ballroom on the site of the former East Wing of the White House have faced further criticism from architects and designers. Ahead of an expected National Capital Planning Commission vote to progress the scheme this week, on April 2, The New York Times has published a deep dive into the design criticisms expressed about the scheme.

The analysis, whose authors include architect Junho Lee, identifies several apparent design flaws in the scheme, notably a dominant south portico with a grand staircase that nonetheless has no entrance to the ballroom, with a dense cluster of columns that may block light into the interior space. The move will also lead to the alteration of a symmetrical driveway by Frederick Law Olmsted. 

The piece notes that the ballroom itself is far larger than typical for a 1,000-capacity space, justified ...