Renovations are underway at Donald Trump’s White House, with the historic Rose Garden being ripped out in favor of paving.
Recent photos depict heavy machinery at work grading and adding gravel to an area only recently covered by lush green grass and bordered by flowers.
The original feature dates back to the Kennedy era, when then-First Lady Jackie attempted to match the gardens she had seen in Europe.
Highlights
- Renovations are underway at the White House, replacing a nearly 60-year-old Rose Garden with paving.
- Trump justified removing the historic terrain, citing press conference logistics and high heels.
- Critics on social media and historians are slamming the redesign.
It’s not the first time the Trump administration has ripped up the Rose Garden
Image credits: White House / Joyce N. Boghosian
Speaking to Fox News' Laura Ingraham, President Trump justified the overhaul, saying, “You know, we use [the Rose Garden] for press conferences, and it doesn’t work because the people fall.”
“The terrain can be wet, and the soft ground can be an issue for some,” he said, as a nod to the approximately 7 to 9 inches of rain Washington, DC, gets annually.
“Women, with the high heels… it just didn’t work,” he continued.
Image credits: Drew Angerer / Getty
Leading up to the work in the area, which started on June 9, a spokesperson for the White House told the press that despite the change, Trump and his wife, Melania, had a “deep respect for the history of the White House and for the Rose Garden.”
“This restoration to the Rose Garden preserves the beauty of the space and builds on the work done in 2020,” their statement to PEOPLE continued, referring to work done by the first Trump administration.
The White House garden, at one point, became a controversial “lightning rod”
Image credits: Kayla Bartkowski / Getty
Leading up to Trump’s departure from the White House in 2020, the country’s 45th president and his wife had removed all the fauna growing in the area to replace an aging irrigation system.
The project included the laying of paved walkways and the replanting of all the greenery.
After former president Joe Biden took the Oval Office, the garden’s historian, Michael Beschloss, became vocal about his dislike for the alteration.
Image credits: Anadolu / Getty
He vented his dissent on X regularly, to the point that it drew a reaction from a usually reserved Melania, and it was not long before CNN reported on it, describing the garden as a controversial “lightning rod.”
Two new flags and a ballroom are on the cards for the White House
In a recent statement to PEOPLE, a White House official explained Trump’s continued work on the project, saying it was focused “on enhancing practical use and guest experience for those attending special events.”
Speaking to the Spectator Magazine’s Ben Domenech in February this year, Trump also shared his vision for the garden, saying:
“I think it’s actually going to look better. But some people would like to leave it. But the problem is you can’t.”
He noted that he also planned on adding another feature.
Image credits: Harris & Ewing Collection / Library of Congress
“So one of the things I’m going to do is build a beautiful, magnificent ballroom at the White House,” he told Domenech.
He also indicated that he planned on placing new flag poles on the north and south lawns.
He told reporters in April: “We’re putting up a beautiful, almost 100-foot-tall American flag on this side, and another one on the other side. Two flags, top of the line.”
Image credits: The White House Historical Association
They’ve needed flagpoles for 200 years. It was something I’ve often said, you know, they don’t have a flagpole, per se.”
Social media is not enthusiastic about the renovation
Not everyone is enthusiastic about the alterations, and the discussion spilled out onto social media.
Image credits: White House / Andrea Hanks
One person predicted that the paving would not last. In response to the story’s appearance on social media, they wrote: “In a few years time that pavement will be torn out and a garden replanted! Bank on it.”
“I would like to see before and after photos' I hope its recorded for our viewing,” another chimed in.
One person’s thoughts were with the first lady who planted the garden when they said: “Thank God Jackie Kennedy isn’t around to see this!”
Social media thinks they paved paradise and put up a parking lot
