(This April 18 story has been repeated with no changes to the text.)
WASHINGTON, April 17 (Reuters) – A U.S. appeals court allowed President Donald Trump’s administration on Friday night to continue construction of a $400 million ballroom on the site of the White House’s demolished East Wing, setting a June hearing to review a Washington judge’s order halting the project.
An order by a three‑judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit put the lower court’s preliminary injunction on hold for now, giving the panel time to consider the U.S. Justice Department’s request for a longer pause while the appeal is pending.
The appeals court said it will hear arguments on June 5 on whether construction should be stopped during the appeal. The order did not address the merits of the underlying lawsuit, which challenges the Trump administration’s authority to build the ballroom.
The National Trust for Historic Preservation, which filed the lawsuit last year, and the White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment after business hours.
Friday’s ruling temporarily blocks a decision issued a day earlier by U.S. District Judge Richard Leon in Washington, who said the ballroom project was unlawful without approval from the U.S. Congress.
The National Trust sued Trump and several federal agencies in December after the administration demolished the East Wing to make way for the ballroom, arguing the president and the National Park Service lacked authority to tear down the historic structure.
Trump has championed the ballroom as a defining addition to the White House and part of his broader push to reshape Washington. The administration has said the project will modernize infrastructure and bolster security. Trump has emphasized the project is funded entirely by private donors.
(Reporting by Mike Scarcella; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan)
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