PEOC -Renovation of the East Wing and the Ballroom- updated

Presidential Emergency Operations Center  Renovation of the East Wing
Type Of Activity	Renovation
Location
Location	The White House, Washington DC
Date of Activity	2025
Coordinates	38°53′52″N 77°02′11″W

White House Renovation Includes Major Security Upgrades  Beneath the East Wing

President Donald Trump’s sweeping renovation of the White House — a project that has drawn both fascination and fierce criticism — includes one of the most secure and secretive facilities in the U.S. government.

As part of the overhaul, Trump has ordered the temporary demolition of the East Wing, which will be rebuilt and modernized to house the new White House State Ballroom. The East Wing, originally expanded during World War II, conceals the Presidential Emergency Operations Center (PEOC) — the underground bunker designed to protect the president and senior staff during national emergencies.

During a Thursday press briefing, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed that the renovation will include “security enhancements” related to the PEOC. According to reporting by CBS News senior White House correspondent Jennifer Jacobs, anonymous sources said the bunker will receive significant upgrades, with the White House Military Office overseeing the project.

A White House official told the Daily Caller News Foundation that the modernization effort encompasses the entire East Wing to support Trump’s new ballroom — along with the enhanced security features. Trump himself has said that the U.S. military is “deeply involved” in the work, though the White House has not clarified the specific role of defense personnel.

According to a 2020 Military Times report, the PEOC was originally built as a Cold War–era facility capable of withstanding a direct nuclear strike. Access is granted only via a heavily secured elevator behind multiple vault doors equipped with biometric controls. The precise specifications of the facility remain classified.

Recently, the Treasury Department warned employees not to take or share photos of the East Wing demolition, citing concerns over “sensitive items, including security features or confidential structural details,” according to the Wall Street Journal. The directive followed viral social media posts showing heavy machinery tearing into the historic structure.

The Underground White House: A History of Hidden Construction

The White House’s underground complex has evolved quietly over decades of reconstruction.

The East Wing was first constructed in 1902 under President Theodore Roosevelt and rebuilt in 1942 under President Franklin D. Roosevelt, primarily to conceal the newly built underground command center.

The White House tunnel network began during the Truman administration in the early 1950s, when the aging mansion was gutted and rebuilt with steel and concrete. During that reconstruction, a tunnel was installed linking the West Wing and East Wing, allowing access to the PEOC and other shelters.

The East Wing was first constructed in 1902 under President Theodore Roosevelt and rebuilt in 1942 under President Franklin D. Roosevelt, primarily to conceal the newly built underground command center. 

East Wing Tunnel System 1950

Other tunnels connect the East Wing to the Treasury Building, originally built by FDR as an air raid shelter, and to the Old Executive Office Building next door.

Present day tunnel

The PEOC has been upgraded several times since, most notably after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, when it served as a secure coordination site for Vice President Dick Cheney and senior officials.

On September 11, 2001, President George W. Bush’s National Security Council met in the PEOC as the terrorist attacks unfolded on the Twin Towers. First Lady Laura Bush, in her memoir, described descending through “big steel doors” and “unfinished subterranean hallways” to reach the secure conference room adjacent to the PEOC command center.

VP Cheney on a conference call in the PEOC’s conference room

In 2007, a mysterious temporary white building appeared beside the West Wing during the George W. Bush administration — believed to contain communications equipment for the project below..    

Before and after the West Wing upgrade

In 2010, a large-scale excavation outside the West Wing about a new subterranean command center. Officials described it as an “infrastructure systems replacement,” but off-record comments confirmed it was “security-related construction mainly the Situation Room. The structure was dismantled after the underground work was completed in 2012

A former WHCA member who worked in the PEOC during the Carter administration said the underground facility had long needed modernization.

“When he worked in the PEOC almost 50 years ago, it was full of rats, roaches, and asbestos dust,” the former member said. “If the East Wing had to come down to rebuild the PEOC, it was probably overdue. The ballroom might be optional, but the PEOC is essential for continuity of government.”

Demolition starts of the East Wing

On October 23, 2025, crews began tearing down the East Wing façade as part of a $250/$300 million plan to construct Trump’s ballroom. “For more than 150 years, every president has dreamed of having a ballroom at the White House for grand state events,” Trump wrote Monday. “I’m honored to be the first to make it a reality — with zero cost to the American taxpayer.”

East Wing totally demolished

The current project marks the first time in modern history that the East Wing — including the structures above the PEOC — has been completely demolished.