The Reflecting Pool was last renovated between 2010 and 2012 for $34 million, due to the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. 

Here’s a timeline of the Trump administration’s attempts to remodel the landmark pool:

March 31: Trump announces plans to fix ‘absolutely filthy’ Reflecting Pool

Trump announced in a Truth Social post that he and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum planned to fix the Reflecting Pool, though he didn’t specify what the repairs would entail.

“Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum and I are working on fixing the absolutely filthy Reflecting Pool between the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument,” Trump wrote. “This work was supposed to be done by the Biden Administration, but Sleepy Joe doesn’t know what ‘CLEAN’ or proper maintenance is — The President and Secretary do!”

May 7: Trump motorcade drives across the Reflecting Pool to inspect renovations

Trump inspected the progress on the “American flag blue” protective coating being installed in the Reflecting Pool in a presidential motorcade that drove across its drained surface. 

The president told reporters the pool would now have a “great color” and that the pool and its surroundings were dirty and unattractive.

May 11: Nonprofit sues to stop Trump’s Reflecting Pool renovations

The nonprofit Cultural Landscape Foundation filed a lawsuit that sought to stop the Trump administration’s renovation of the Reflecting Pool, arguing the Interior Department didn’t follow proper procedure in renovations and had altered the pool’s natural character.

The CLF said these renovations disregarded the law and Congress, with the pool’s original grey color was a historical and intentional design choice necessary for its proper functioning.

“This latest desecration of the reflecting pool is part of a pattern — epitomized most notably by the rush to destroy the East Wing of the White [House] — in which this Administration willfully disregards legal limits established by Congress,” the lawsuit said.

May 27: Trump says ‘massive amount’ of garbage removed from the Reflecting Pool

Trump said during a Cabinet meeting that 10 dumpsters worth of garbage were removed from the Lincoln Reflecting Pool, calling the pool “disgusting.”

June 4: Trump says Reflecting Pool is getting final coat of paint, announces Lincoln Memorial ‘promenade’

Trump announced that the Reflecting Pool was receiving its final coat of paint before being refilled and opened to the public.

Trump hailed the Reflecting Pool’s renovations as “complete” as crews worked to refill the pool on June 4.

Later that same afternoon, Trump announced plans to build a “promenade” connecting the Lincoln Memorial to the Potomac River.

Neither Trump nor the Department of the Interior said when the bridge would be completed, though Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said plans to build a connecting bridge have existed since the end of the Civil War.

“On the backside of the Lincoln, as President Trump described, right now there’s no pedestrian access,” Burgum said. 

“You’re on the Mall, people come from around the world. They don’t know that 100 yards away is the beautiful Potomac River, which was part of the original plan. And now they’d be able to walk around the Lincoln Memorial, walk on a pedestrian bridge over the first highway, walk over the next one, and right down to the water. It would complete the vision. These projects would complete the original vision.”

June 12: Algae reappears in the Reflecting Pool

Algae reappeared in the Reflecting Pool days after Trump said renovations were complete and an “86” was found marked in the grass near the Lincoln Memorial.  

The Interior Department responded to algae sightings in the pool, saying it was “residual” and that devices known as “nanobubblers” would be deployed to maintain an algae-free pool.

A spokesperson for the Trump administration said the “nanobubblers” are a state-of-the-art ozone filtration system and that the residual algae appeared because it was residual in supply lines as part of a normal startup process.

National Park Service members were seen cleaning the pool of blooming algae on Monday.

June 16: The National Park Service dumps gallons of hydrogen peroxide to treat algae in the Reflecting Pool

Gallons of hydrogen peroxide were seen being dumped into the Reflecting Pool by National Park Service crews to combat algae that has grown in the pool after Trump’s renovations and turned the water bright green.

Hydrogen peroxide combats algal growth by generating reactive oxygen species that kill algae. The pool’s stagnant water, shallowness, and direct sunlight make algae-killing efforts difficult. 

June 18: The Interior Department compares Reflecting Pool’s algae treatment to ‘destroyed’ Iranian navy

The Interior Department said algae-combatting efforts have returned the Reflecting Pool to its blue hue, comparing the cleanup to the Iranian navy.  

“The Reflecting Pool water is crystal clear, and our National Park Service team is now vacuuming up the dead algae resting on the bottom of some parts of the Reflecting Pool — just like the destroyed Iranian Navy resting on the bottom of the Persian Gulf,” the X post said.

June 21: Vandals damage the reflecting pool

Trump accused vandals of causing the paint to peel and said many had been arrested on charges of destruction of government property.

Former three-time Olympian canoeist David Hearn, 67, was among those arrested on a misdemeanor charge of destruction of government property.

Hearn said he was biking through the area when he grabbed an already peeling piece and was subsequently arrested by Park Police.

Washington, D.C., District Attorney Jeanine Pirro on Sunday said, “Anyone who was in a position of vandalizing or attempting to vandalize the reflecting pool will face the criminal justice system in D.C.”

Trump said much of the pool would likely need to be drained on Saturday afternoon for repairs.

Beyond problems with vandalism, a dead duckling was also found floating in the reflecting pool on Sunday.  

TRUMP MUST NOT GIVE A GREEN LIGHT IN LEBANON 

June 22: Trump says 300 foot ‘gash’ in Reflecting Pool is being ‘taken care of’ 

Trump said vandals have caused a 300-foot “gash” to appear in the Reflecting Pool, in a Truth Social post Monday morning. 

“The only one that was Vandalized was the Reflecting Pool, which is being taken care of, ASAP! It has been given a 300 foot long gash, chemicals have been illegally placed in the water,” he said. “Please remember that there is a 10 year prison sentence for the destruction, or even the attempted destruction, of such things — Which will be fully enforced!”