WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump this week quietly appointed four new members to the Commission of Fine Arts, one of two federal panels reviewing his plan to build a White House ballroom.
One of the four is James McCrery, an architect who had led the now $400 million ballroom project until Trump replaced him late last year
. McCrery also served on the commission during Trump's first term as president.The White House announced the project last
summer and Trump later demolished the East Wing to make room for the ballroom. The National Trust for Historic Preservation has sued in federal court to halt construction until the fine arts panel and a second federal commission give their approval.
The four new members were revealed in court papers filed Thursday by a White House official as part of that lawsuit. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The commission, which normally has seven members, has been vacant for months. Trump dismissed six commissioners last fall after the East Wing was demolished. A seventh commissioner, who was the panel’s chair, resigned after Trump took office last year because their term had expired.
The National Trust for Historic Preservation has accused the Trump administration of violating federal laws by starting the project before submitting it for independent reviews by the commissions and Congress, as well as the public.
The three remaining members appointed by Trump to the Commission of Fine Arts are: Mary Anne Carter of Tennessee; Roger Kimball of Connecticut; and Matthew Taylor of Washington, D.C.
The National Capital Planning Commission, the second federal panel with oversight of construction on federal land, including the White House grounds, heard an initial presentation about the ballroom at its meeting on Jan. 8.
