Trending Now - White House Plans Underground Visitor Screening Center in DC

WHO:

President Donald Trump

U.S. Secret Service

National Park Service

National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC)

Rep. Michael Turner (R-Ohio)

Former Rep. Joe Walsh (Illinois)

U.S. District Judge Richard J. Leon

WHAT:

The White House plans to build a 33,000-square-foot (3,066-square-meter) underground visitor screening center.

The facility will have seven screening lanes to ease processing and reduce wait times.

The new screening facility will replace temporary trailers and tents used by the U.S. Secret Service since 2005.

Construction could begin as early as August 2026.

The facility is scheduled to be operational by July 2028.

WHERE:

The screening center will be built beneath Sherman Park, located southeast of the White House and directly south of the Treasury building.

Visitors will access the security facility via a ramp at the southeast corner of 15th Street and E Street, near the Treasury Department.

WHEN:

Plans for the screening center were included in the preliminary agenda released on March 11th, 2026.

The National Capital Planning Commission is scheduled to discuss the proposal on April 2nd, 2026.

The facility is expected to open in July 2028.

WHY:

The project is part of the Trump administration’s plan to overhaul the White House grounds.

The new facility aims to improve visitor experience by reducing congestion and wait times.

HOW:

The project is a collaboration between the Executive Office of the President, the U.S. Secret Service, and the National Park Service.

The design includes a 5,000-square-foot sunken plaza intended to reduce congestion on the adjacent sidewalk.

(UPDATED March 14, 2026 03:45 UTC)

President Trump has announced plans for a new 33,000-square-foot underground visitor screening center beneath Sherman Park, which will feature seven screening lanes to improve processing times and replace the temporary structures currently in use by the U.S. Secret Service. Construction is expected to begin as early as August 2026, with the facility set to open by July 2028, and visitors will access it via a ramp near the Treasury Department. This project, part of the administration's effort to revamp the White House grounds, aims to enhance the visitor experience by alleviating congestion and wait times.