WASHINGTON>> President Donald Trump’s White House ballroom won final approval from a key agency on Thursday, despite a federal judge recently ordering a halt to construction unless Congress allows what would be the biggest structural change to the American landmark in more than 70 years.

The 12-member National Capital Planning Commission, the agency tasked with approving construction on federal property in the Washington region, went ahead with the vote because U.S. District Judge Richard Leon’s ruling — which came two days earlier — affects construction activities but not the planning process, said the commission’s Trump-appointed chair, Will Scharf.

A vote of 8-1, with two commissioners voting present and one absent, allowed the plan to move forward.

Before the vote, Scharf, a top aide in Trump’s White House, noted that Leon’s order has been stayed for two weeks as the administration seeks an appeal. He said, as he understood the decision, it “really does not impact our action here today.”

Reading from notes, Scharf delivered an impassioned, pre-vote defense of the project that reviewed the entire history of the White House — including changes and additions that were criticized at the time they were made but have become beloved with the passage of time. He spoke about the addition of the north and south porticos and the balcony added by President Harry Truman.

Scharf suggested that Trump’s proposed ballroom similarly will come to be viewed as a wise addition — despite drawing contemporary opposition from some members of the public and government officials.

“I believe that, in time, this ballroom will be considered every bit of a national treasure as the other key components of the White House,” Scharf said.

Scharf also said the proposed ballroom has been viewed negatively because of opposition to Trump, not because of its merits, saying, “I feel that we’ve been unfairly slighted in the press and otherwise for the way we’ve gone about reviewing this particular project.”

Despite the agency’s approval, however, the judge’s ruling and the legal fight over the ballroom could stall progress on a legacy project that Trump is racing to see completed before the end of his term in early 2029. It’s among a series of changes the Republican president is planning for the nation’s capital to leave his lasting imprint while he’s still in office.

The vote by the commission, which includes three members appointed by Trump, had initially been scheduled for March but was postponed to Thursday because so many people signed up to comment at the commission’s meeting. The comments were overwhelmingly opposed to the ballroom.

The lone “no” vote was cast by Phil Mendelson, a Democrat who chairs the Council of the District of Columbia. Linda Argo and Arrington Dixon, the two commissioners appointed by Mayor Muriel Bowser, a Democrat, voted present.

Mendelson criticized the design of the ballroom addition and how fast it was approved.

“It’s just too large,” he said.

White House spokesman Davis Ingle commended the commission’s “decision to approve President Trump’s historic vision to build a much needed ballroom at the White House.”

“We look forward to seeing the completion of this project on time and under budget,” Ingle said in a statement.