President Donald Trump has denied that he plans to name the new White House ballroom after himself, saying that such reports are “fake news.”

White House spokesperson Davis Ingle previously said in an email to Newsweek that “any announcement made on the name of the ballroom will come directly from President Trump himself, and not through anonymous and unnamed sources.”

This week saw the demolition of the East Wing of the White House, which used to house the first lady’s offices, to make way for a new 90,000 square foot state ballroom that is planned to hold up to 650 seated people.

The move caused controversy with some lawmakers, with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat, accusing the president of pursuing a “vanity project,” while Trump insisted the East Wing was “ready to be replaced.”

Trump said a new hosting venue at the White House had been wanted “for at least 150 years,” adding the East Wing had been “very, very much changed from what it was originally.”

Initially, the new White House ball room was estimated to cost $200 million, though this has since been increased to over $300 million. According to Trump, the money is coming from private donors.

The National Trust for Historic Preservation, meanwhile, has urged the Trump administration to pause the demolition until a planning commission review is completed, expressing concern that the ballroom “will overwhelm the White House itself.” The White House is 55,000 square feet.

On Friday, ABC News reported that officials involved in the planning of the ballroom project had started to refer to it as “The President Donald J. Trump Ballroom.”

However, speaking to reporters before boarding Marine One on Friday night, Trump said he had considered naming the new structure the Presidential Ballroom “or something like that,” but added that “we haven’t really thought about a name yet.”

He previously told ABC News on Thursday that he wouldn’t “get into it now” when asked about a name for the new ballroom.

Trump also revealed that the budget could expand again as he said the White House has around $350 million now for the project. He also previously teased that if he were to receive a payment from the Department of Justice , which would be in penalty for investigations into any potential links between his 2016 campaign and the Russian government, he would donate some or all of the money to the ballroom project.

The East Wing was first built in 1902 and expanded in 1942, and the demolition has proven highly contentious, with some Americans, including historians and lawmakers, criticizing its destruction without consultation of the public.

The White House posted archival photos of previous White House renovations, with the caption: “Hi, haters.”

President Donald Trump this week wrote in a Truth Social post: “I am pleased to announce that ground has been broken on the White House grounds to build the new, big, beautiful White House Ballroom. Completely separate from the White House itself, the East Wing is being fully modernized as part of this process, and will be more beautiful than ever when it is complete! For more than 150 years, every President has dreamt about having a Ballroom at the White House to accommodate people for grand parties, State Visits, etc. I am honored to be the first President to finally get this much-needed project underway — with zero cost to the American Taxpayer! The White House Ballroom is being privately funded by many generous Patriots, Great American Companies, and, yours truly. This Ballroom will be happily used for Generations to come! President DJT”

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Thursday: “They have ruled consistently, their general counsel has said, when it comes to Phase One of this project, the tearing down of the current East Wing structure, a submission is not required legally for that. Only for vertical construction will a submission be required. That’s a legal opinion from them, and we are following that legal opinion.”

Carol Quillen, president and CEO of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, said in a statement: “We acknowledge the utility of a larger meeting space at the White House, but we are deeply concerned that the massing and height of the proposed new construction will overwhelm the White House itself—it is 55,000 square feet—and may also permanently disrupt the carefully balanced classical design of the White House with its two smaller, and lower, East and West Wings.

“We respectfully urge the Administration and the National Park Service to pause demolition until plans for the proposed ballroom go through the legally required public review processes, including consultation and review by the National Capital Planning Commission and the Commission of Fine Arts, both of which have authority to review new construction at the White House, and to invite comments from the American people.”

Senator Elizabeth Warren, a Massachusetts Democrat, wrote on X on Tuesday: “Oh you’re trying to say the cost of living is skyrocketing? Donald Trump can’t hear you over the sound of bulldozers demolishing a wing of the White House to build a new grand ballroom.”

California Governor Gavin Newsom’s Press Office in a post on X last month wrote: “THE ‘NAPOLEON COMPLEX’ BALLROOM WILL BE THREE TIMES THE SIZE OF THE WHITE HOUSE. AN UGLY MONUMENT TO DONNY’S SHORTCOMINGS. (SOME SAY TINY) I, GAVIN C. NEWSOM, WILL SIGN AN EXECUTIVE ORDER TO CHANGE THE NAME FROM ‘THE DONALD TRUMP BALLROOM’ TO ‘THE EPSTEIN FILES STORAGE FACILITY.'”

It remains to be seen how the public and politicians will view the new White House ballroom once construction has been completed, a precise date for which has not been announced.