The White House is considering installing a permanent fence around Pennsylvania Avenue and Lafayette Square in an effort to bolster security.
According to CBS News, the proposal is still in the early stages, and contractors have not been hired. The current plan would enable the Secret Service and the White House to open and close portions of the fencing as necessary.
An official told the outlet that security improvements are already underway. “The work on the North Portico doors is for security enhancements and upgrades,” the official said. “The North Portico project is expected to be finished around mid-September.”
“There are always discussions ongoing about how to make the White House Complex as safe as possible. However, nothing is confirmed at this time. Any projects that are pursued will go through the necessary review process,” an official said in a separate statement.
Meanwhile, construction on the White House ballroom is expected to include a bunker with missile-resistant steel, drone defenses, a military hospital, and bomb shelters.
“This goes down very deep,” Trump said, gesturing toward the excavation. “These are already down two floors. That is down about six stories deep. That’s big stuff. Normally, when you build a ballroom, you build it flat. You just throw the ballroom.”
In June, President Trump provided an update on the ballroom’s construction, saying it was coming together “fantastically well.”
“The Ballroom is coming along fantastically well. It’s on time, and under budget (Unlike the Federal Reserve Building, where ‘Too Late’ has done a terrible job of Cost and Time Control!), and at a much higher quality than I ever promised, including the DronePort, and ALL of the other many Military elements, which are all vital for National Security, that are being built throughout the whole integrated, cohesive Project,” he wrote on Truth Social. “It is desperately needed, and will be very special!”
