King’s White House visit threatens to be overshadowed by Portaloo
A royal visit to the White House is never complete without a visit to Portaloo.
When Donald Trump hosts the King in Washington this April, the United States is preparing to roll out the red carpet for His Majesty with a large, elaborately decorated tent on the South Lawn; There is a portable toilet conveniently located outside this tent.
White House secretary Will Scharf set the stage for a less-than-ideal backdrop during a meeting where he laid out plans to demolish the East Wing of the White House to build a $400 million (£300 million) luxury ballroom.
For years, US presidents have hosted large state dinners in lavish tents at the White House.
“I think it is remarkable that the president of the United States was hosted at Windsor Castle when he flew to the United Kingdom,” Mr. Scharf told a meeting of the National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC).
“Next year, when the King…comes to the United States, he will most likely…be accommodated in a tent on the South Lawn with porta-potties.”
Britain put on a show full of glitz and glamor for Mr Trump’s unprecedented second state visit to the country in September.
He was taken around the grounds of Windsor Castle in the Irish State Coach, then inspected the guard of honor and watched the Red Arrows parade, followed by a state banquet at the castle.
Architect Shalom Baranes, who took over the White House ballroom project late last year, told the meeting that the room would be approximately 22,000 square feet and designed to accommodate 1,000 seated guests.
Mr. Trump at one time had a ballroom that could fit about 1,300 people, but Mr. Baranes said the president’s team did not explore the option of increasing the size of the project.
The total area of the new East Wing, including two floors and the ballroom, will be just over 89,000 square feet, he said. It will feature a two-story colonnade connecting the White House’s East Room to the new ballroom.
Mr. Baranes said the administration is also considering a single-story addition to the West Wing colonnade “to restore a sense of symmetry” to the overall White House complex.
Opponents of the project said the expansion could dwarf the main mansion and criticized the demolition of the first lady’s office and movie theater.
But a federal judge said he was not inclined to order the administration to stop work.
