The board of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington voted to proceed with renovations to the main building while maintaining limited operations in a separate facility known as the Reach, according to reporting on the decision. The board, described as primarily composed of presidential allies, also voted to add an inscription to the building that would read “Restored and Renovated by President Donald J Trump.”
The votes represent a response to a legal challenge brought by the Trump administration. In May, US District Judge Christopher Cooper had ruled that Trump’s name must be removed from the building’s facade, determining that only Congress possessed the authority to change the institution’s name. The center complied with the order in June but has appealed the decision. Cooper also issued a temporary injunction blocking the president’s plan to close the facility for two years of renovations, which had been scheduled to begin in July following a unanimous board vote in March.
Democratic Representative Joyce Beatty of Ohio, who serves on the board, characterized the latest decision as an attempt to evade the court’s ruling. “This latest development is a transparent effort to circumvent the Court’s ruling, and flies in the face of the statutes that Congress passed,” Beatty said in a statement. The judge had previously found that the board’s initial closure decision appeared “ill-informed and seemingly preordained” and lacked sufficient deliberation on the matter.
Management had presented the board with three options prior to the vote: a complete closure, a partial closure allowing some public access and limited programming, or a series of phased closures targeting critical infrastructure needs while maintaining regular programming. The plan under consideration includes a $250 million renewal project featuring significant repairs, new marble floors, acoustical improvements, and relocation of a 3,000-pound bronze bust of President Kennedy. Any decisions reached by the board remain subject to approval by a federal judge, with the Kennedy Center required to submit its plans to Cooper for review within the coming week.
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