Donald Trump’s concrete overhaul of the White House’s famed Rose Garden hasn’t gone down well with his critics, who have accused the US President of paving over an important heritage site. Trump announced plans to redesign the green area bordering the Oval Office in March, telling Fox News that the existing site wasn’t practical for official events including press conferences. “It doesn’t work because the people fall,” he said. “The terrain can be wet, and the soft ground can be an issue for some… Women, with the high heels, it just didn’t work.”
Images have since emerged of the renovation, which appears to have replaced the central lawn of the garden, first created in 1903 by First Lady Edith Roosevelt, with a concrete patio. While the area’s famed rose bushes remain intact, commentators have slammed Trump’s redesign as “absolutely appalling” and mourned the loss of “a beautiful piece of the White House”.
“Dear God. The Rose Garden renovation looks worse than anyone could have ever imagined,” Democrat strategist Chris Jackson wrote on X. “Here’s hoping the next president will rip this up and restore its beauty.”
“Wow. The Rose Garden renovation by Trump is absolutely appalling,” liberal content creator Harry Sisson added. “He removed a beautiful piece of the White House and replaced it with concrete cr*p.
“I’m glad I got to see the White House in person before Trump did this because this is just gross.”
Another social media commentator likened the garden’s new look to a “parking lot”, while a fourth wrote: “The fact that he turned the Rose Garden into f**king cement is such a perfect metaphor for everything these people do.”
The Rose Garden isn’t the only part of the presidential residence that Trump is planning to change beyond recognition during his second term.
He is also set on building a 9,000-square-foot ballroom on the estate, replacing the East Wing building that traditionally served as the First Lady’s offices.
The work, which is estimated to begin in September and finish within the next four years, could cost up to $200 million (£150,000) and would forgo the need for guests to be shuttled from the White House to tents on the South Lawn for large-scale events that exceed the residence’s capacity.
“He has a vision to make the White House as exceptional and beautiful as possible for future presidents and administrations,” a spokesperson told NBC News. “He is very hands on and involved in all of this.”