Burgum previews Reflecting Pool’s new ‘American flag blue’ floor

Interior Secretary Doug Burgum shared an update Friday of the ongoing installation of an “American flag blue” floor in the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool. 

“Renovations are underway!” Burgum wrote in a post on the social platform X, alongside a picture of workers applying the new blue base to the pool. 

The secretary thanked President Trump for “investing in our capital.”

“The Reflecting Pool is about to look better than ever!” Burgum added.

The installation process began Thursday and is expected to take three days and cost around $1.5 million, Trump announced in an Oval Office press briefing. 

The president told reporters Thursday that the new floor color is made of the “latest and greatest filament” in the color “American flag blue.”

The iconic water feature will reopen “long before” America’s 250th birthday celebration on the National Mall this summer, according to the president.  

“You’re going to end up with a beautiful, beautiful reflecting pool, the way it’s supposed to be,” Trump said. “Much better than it was, actually.”

The president said that robots will clean the pool. 

In a Truth Social post on Friday evening, Trump shared additional photos of the new floor’s installation process.

He also commended Burgum’s work on the renovation project, claiming that it was originally supposed to cost “301 Million Dollars and take three years” to complete. 

“I do many such things for Government and, as President, it is my Honor to do so. This is just one of them,” the president said, touting his administration’s focus on lowering prescription drug costs. 

The pool spans the length of 12 Olympic-sized swimming pools, from the Lincoln Memorial to the World War II Memorial, and it reflects an image of the Washington Monument. 

It has undergone several renovations since its dedication in 1922. Former President Obama’s administration requested $34 million in stimulus funding to renovate the site in 2012, and the National Park Service drains the pool for cleaning and upkeep projects on an intermittent basis. 

The Reflecting Pool project is the latest in Trump’s efforts to “beautify” the nation’s capital, which he initially proposed in an executive order in March 2025. 

These efforts included his controversial decision to deploy the National Guard to D.C. to crack down on crime in the District. 

Trump has also launched a task force focused on making the city “safe and beautiful again,” and his administration has led restoration projects for several historic fountains, public golf courses and parks around the city. 

The president’s proposed budget for 2027 requested an additional $10 billion for his Presidential Capital Stewardship Program. 

Updated at 7:15 p.m. EDT

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