Donald Trump’s long-held ambition to construct a grand ballroom at the White House is finally manifesting, a decade and a half after his initial proposal was notably dismissed by the Obama administration.

The journey to this opulent addition began around 2010 when Trump, then a real estate magnate, approached President Barack Obama’s office with an offer to replace the existing “old broken canvas tent” used for official events with a lavish new hall. This offer, detailed in a 2011 ABC News interview with George Stephanopoulos, underscored Trump’s vision for a more impressive space for entertaining dignitaries.

Former Obama adviser David Axelrod later corroborated Trump’s unsolicited outreach in his 2015 memoir, “Believer,” recalling Trump’s persuasive pitch: “Let me build you a ballroom you can assemble and take apart. Trust me, it’ll look great.” However, the administration, through then-White House press secretary Josh Earnest, declined the offer, deeming it inappropriate to feature a “shiny gold Trump sign” on any part of the historic White House property.

Despite the initial rebuff, Trump’s vision, often interpreted as a form of “revenge,” is now taking shape. On a recent Thursday, his press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, formally announced the plans for the new facility, signaling a significant architectural undertaking within the East Wing of the White House.

The proposed ballroom is slated to be an expansive 90,000 total square feet, a formidable size that would nearly double the White House’s existing footprint and more than triple the capacity of the current largest room, the East Room. The designs reportedly bear a striking resemblance to Trump’s signature event hall at Mar-a-Lago, though they are planned to dwarf even that structure by over 70,000 square feet, emphasizing an unprecedented scale for a White House event space.

Justifying the project, Trump explained to reporters that the White House has long sought a proper ballroom for hosting major international figures like the President of China, a need historically met by temporary tents. He asserted that no previous president possessed the unique aptitude for ballrooms that he claims to have, framing the project as fulfilling a long-standing institutional desire.

This ambitious construction is not the only architectural or design alteration made under Trump’s influence during his time in office. Previous modifications include the controversial paving over of the famous Rose Garden, originally established in 1913, as well as the addition of liberal gold accents to the Oval Office, plans to renovate Abraham Lincoln’s former bedroom bathroom, and the installation of two colossal 88-foot flagpoles bearing American flags outside the building’s front.