\n<\/p>\n
NEW YORK — <\/span>The National Trust for Historic Preservation, which has been at the forefront of efforts to halt President Donald Trump’s<\/a> massive White House ballroom project<\/a>, is launching a new legal defense fund to help underwrite its work.<\/p>\n The group on Wednesday announced a campaign aimed at raising $10 million \u201cto protect and honor our nation\u2019s shared civic and cultural inheritance against urgent threats emanating from Washington.”<\/p>\n In an interview, the group’s president and CEO, Brent Leggs, said the fund was the first of its kind for the privately funded nonprofit organization, which is charged by Congress with protecting historic sites, and would help bolster its legal division and government relations staff.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is a response to the urgent and existential threats to historic preservation,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n The group has been critical of efforts by the Republican president to put his lasting stamp on Washington and the White House. <\/p>\n So far that includes razing the East Wing<\/a> to make way for a ballroom that will dwarf the rest of the complex; paving over the White House Rose Garden to create a patio in the style of his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida; adding a helipad to the South Lawn; and redecorating the Oval Office with golden accents. Elsewhere in the nation’s capital, he has been trying to rename and renovate the Kennedy Center,<\/a> is working to build an enormous triumphal arch<\/a> between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington National Cemetery, and has tried repeatedly to refurbish the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool<\/a>.<\/p>\n In December, the preservation group sued<\/a> in federal court seeking to halt the ballroom project<\/a> until it goes through multiple independent reviews and wins approval from Congress. The Supreme Court last month ruled against the group<\/a>, with the majority saying it likely did not have the legal right to challenge the project, and allowed work on the ballroom to continue. <\/p>\n The group is part of a lawsuit aimed at halting the administration\u2019s efforts to overhaul the Kennedy Center, which was abruptly closed to the public<\/a> last week. Leggs said more lawsuits are coming. <\/p>\n The group has also been pushing back against proposed changes to the National Historic Preservation Act that it says threaten legal protections for historic sites and public land.<\/p>\n At a National Preservation Summit in Washington, Leggs painted the projects in stark terms.<\/p>\n \u201cOur national inheritance hangs in balance today,\u201d he said, according to a copy of his remarks. \u201cIt is not an exaggeration to say that this moment is existential. For our field, for the communities we serve, and for generations to come.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cTogether, we will raise an initial $10 million over three years in a moonshot effort to ensure our nation\u2019s civic and cultural heritage remains intact through tangible connections to our shared history,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n