WASHINGTON —

The White House broke ground Monday on construction projects ordered by President Donald Trump to pave over the grass in the Rose Garden and install flagpoles on the north and south lawns.

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The projects are part of a series of personal touches that Trump, a real estate developer turned politician, has added or is adding to the Executive Mansion and its grounds since he opened his second term in January. The projects also include new artwork of himself on walls and gold-toned flourishes in the Oval Office. He also wants to add a ballroom.

Reporters on Monday noticed that work had begun in the Rose Garden, just off the Oval Office on the south grounds, when they were taken out to the Sout

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