White House set for renovations as Trump goes on ‘working vacation’

President Trump and his staff are set to temporarily move out of the West Wing as renovations on the building get underway.

Trump leaves Friday for what the White House has called an extended “working vacation” at his golf club in Bedminster, N.J., while his staff in Washington will clear out of the West Wing and move into the Eisenhower Executive Office Building next door.

Work has already begun to replace the West Wing’s 27-year-old heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) system, a White House official told reporters Thursday. Because of the frequency of use, the HVAC system’s usage age is pegged at around 84 years old.

{mosads}White House deputy press secretary Lindsay Walters told reporters that the South Portico steps on the South Lawn will also be repaired. Those steps haven’t been restored since President Dwight Eisenhower was in the White House.

Among the other facets of the White House that will be refurbished are the Navy mess kitchen, a restaurant in the West Wing run by the U.S. Navy, the building’s lower lobby, the information technology (IT) system and other “generic cosmetic upgrades.”

Trump is expected to stay at his New Jersey golf club for 17 days.

Walters briefed reporters on the renovation plans while aboard Air Force One on Thursday evening en route to Trump’s campaign-style rally in West Virginia.