President Donald Trump made an unannounced appearance on the roof of the White House on 5 August, telling reporters he was “taking a little walk” as he surveyed the site of a planned expansion of the executive mansion. Flanked by aides, Secret Service agents and architect James McCrery, the president used the vantage point to review designs for a large new ballroom. The administration is preparing to break ground next month on a 90,000-square-foot ballroom that is expected to cost about $200 million. Trump says the project will be paid for by him and private donors, adding that taxpayer money will not be used. Designed to seat roughly 650 guests, the facility would be the first major structural addition to the White House since the Truman Balcony was completed in 1948; offices housed in the East Wing will be relocated during construction. The ballroom forms part of a broader makeover that has already seen the iconic Rose Garden’s grass replaced with a stone patio, gold embellishments added to the Oval Office and new flagpoles installed on the lawns. Preservation groups have raised concerns that the changes risk altering the historic character of the 18-acre complex. Asked from the ground what he planned to build next, Trump joked that he was considering “nuclear missiles,” a remark the White House later dismissed as humor. The president did not provide a timetable for completing the ballroom but said the work would leave a lasting mark on the property.