White House plans new visitor entrance under adjacent park

The White House wants to construct a 33,000-square-foot building beneath nearby Sherman Park to screen visitors entering the grounds for tours and events, according to plans published by the National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC).

The plans, submitted April 2, would have visitors access the security facility via a ramp at the southeast corner of 15th Street and E Street, near the Treasury Department. Officials noted that guests would first enter a 5,000-square-foot sunken plaza, intended to reduce congestion on the adjacent sidewalk.

The White House noted that the building, which will have seven screening lanes, will replace the temporary trailers and tents used by the U.S. Secret Service since 2005.

A new 4,000-square-foot building along East Executive Avenue would serve as both the entry point for badged staff and contractors and the exit point for those leaving the grounds.

The plans indicate the White House hopes to break ground on the project later this year and have it operational by July 2028, roughly around when the new expansive ballroom on the East Wing is slated for completion.

The bronze statue of General William Tecumseh Sherman, a Union Army commander, would remain “protected” in the center of the park, the submission states. The monument was dedicated in October 1903 by former President Teddy Roosevelt.

The plans are expected to be formally unveiled at the NCPC’s next meeting on April 2, according to a tentative agenda. The commission is also set to decide at that meeting whether to approve plans for the ballroom project, after delaying the vote earlier this month.  

President Trump has already made major renovations to the White House grounds in his second term, including paving over the Rose Garden, and is pushing other proposals that would dramatically alter the historic property’s appearance.

Those efforts have triggered pushback from Democratic lawmakers, historians and preservation groups, who have criticized the administration for bypassing traditional permitting, zoning and approval processes.

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