Headline: Washington Business Journal, 12/5/2025
Doug Fruehling reports:
Our managing editor, Michael Neibauer, and I have been covering Baranes for years. I first interviewed him for a profile in 2006, when he told me a little about his approach, saying, “I’m really someone who will spend a long time thinking about the building and what kind of a building it should be."
[snip]
So you have to wonder why he would risk a stellar career and near pristine reputation for a project that could possibly end up in disaster. He could be publicly fired and castigated by the developer-in-chief or ostracized among his colleagues and clients.
Baranes, who for obvious reasons declined our request for comment, must think he can persuade the president to create a ballroom that's both fitting of the White House and fits alongside the White House. I can't imagine he'd have accepted the job if he didn't think he could do that.
But let's take a moment to review the Shalom Baranes Associates portfolio. The architect has built his reputation on modern architecture, not the classical architecture Trump has vowed to bring back through executive order. Baranes is not known for the gold gilding and over-the-top extravagances often found in Trumpland. Clean lines like CityCenterDC and the Nigerian chancery are his calling card. [emphasis added]
Related posts:
December 2025White House Ballroom correction: This is not construction; its demolition and site preparation. (12/4)
November 2025
White House Ballroom oversight gaps emerge: Let us count the ways (Part 1: National Capital Planning Commission). (11/18)
What did Donald Trump know about the demolition of the East Wing of White House and when did he know it? (11/2)
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