Topline
A federal judge on Thursday ordered the Kennedy Center to provide 30 days notice before making “any changes” to construction plans, including potential demolition of the performing arts venue, which the Trump administration has repeatedly threatened.
A security guard stand next to a scaffolding and a large protective tarp covering part of the facade of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, DC, on September 15.
AFP via Getty Images
Key Facts
In his Thursday afternoon order, District Judge Christopher R. Cooper pointed to a claim the Kennedy Center made in a related court case, saying it would “inform Plaintiffs and the Court” if there were any changes to its construction plans that would “constitute a reversal of the Center’s position that the building will not be demolished.”
Cooper also denied plaintiff Rep. Joyce Beatty’s motion for an emergency hearing about the Kennedy Center’s abrupt closure, instead ordering the Trump administration to provide a sworn declaration about the “‘temporary closure’ and emergency repairs” it began earlier this week.
Cooper also allowed Beatty to seek discovery regarding Trump’s recent claim the Kennedy Center would be “ripped down” if he is not recognized, as well as a picture from Wednesday evening that appears to depict Trump looking at a placard that says “Kennedy Center DEMOLISHED.”
Beatty, who has fought Trump’s Kennedy Center takeover in court, urged Cooper earlier Thursday to issue an order instructing the Trump administration that “wholesale demolition of the building or demolition that would make public access impossible would violate the Court’s existing order” that blocks a closure.
The government submitted a declaration Thursday morning from the venue’s Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer Charles Matthew Floca, who alleged the building was being closed for a week, “unless extended,” after he “determined that continued life-safety hazards to individuals who might access certain public portions of the building have created untenable risks to the health and safety of those individuals.”
Beatty has alleged the Trump administration’s “rationale that they are only temporarily closing the Kennedy Center is a plain pretext to justify shutting down the Center permanently.”
News Peg
The legal battle over the Kennedy Center, which has been in operation since 1971 and historically was separate from partisan politics, escalated this week, after the venue’s board formally voted Tuesday to close the building and begin renovations. (Doing so would require the court ruling against it to first be lifted.) Cooper ruled the same day against inscribing Trump’s name on the building, writing, “Simply put, Defendants cannot install memorials for President Trump or anyone or anything else at the Kennedy Center without Congress’s blessing.” Trump has lashed out against that ruling, saying on Truth Social that while the building would be closed “immediately,” no renovations would take place if the ruling against him putting his name on the building is a “negative one” and “is not overturned by the Supreme Court.” The building’s sudden closure on Wednesday then ramped up fears about what steps the Trump administration could take in terms of demolishing the building or restricting access, and Beatty argued in her request for an emergency hearing the abrupt move could signal the government “intend[s] to undertake immediate steps in order to make public access practically impossible for the foreseeable future, including by demolishing public avenues of access to the building.”
What ‘Safety Risks’ Does The Kennedy Center Allegedly Have?
Floca claimed in his declaration Thursday that the Kennedy Center had to be closed due to “structural deterioration” that has “continued to compound in recent years.” The director pointed to an assessment by engineering firm Walter P. Moore this summer that found “advanced deterioration” in overhead panels at the venue and issues with the building’s ceiling plaster, including water-related deterioration. Floca also alleged water damages from severe storms earlier in September had caused the “structural failure” of a five foot-by-four foot piece of ceiling plaster.
What Did Trump Say About The Kennedy Center Wednesday?
Trump, who has long called for the Kennedy Center to be broadly renovated and inscribed with his name, told reporters Wednesday he thought his government deserved to be “recognized” for “fix[ing]” the Kennedy Center and “subsidizing it.” The president claimed the building is a “mess” and was losing millions of dollars, and suggested he would only be interested in making the necessary investments in it if the building could then celebrate him. “For the Trump administration, and me, to get involved and take that on long-term … I think the Trump administration should certainly have recognition,” the president claimed, adding the building would “close” and be demolished otherwise. “I’d like to be able to save it, but it’s going to take a lot of subsidy in the future, and for us, the administration, to want to do that, I think the Trump administration should be recognized,” Trump said.
Further Reading
Rep. Beatty Challenges Kennedy Center Closure—Here’s What’s Next In Legal Battle (Forbes)
Kennedy Center Appeals Ruling Blocking Trump’s Name From Being Inscribed (Forbes)
Trump Says Kennedy Center Renovations Won’t Happen Unless Court Lets It Inscribe His Name (Forbes)
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