WASHINGTON — Cultural organizations and historic preservation advocates have filed legal action to prevent major structural modifications at the Kennedy Center before a planned two-year shutdown that President Donald Trump says is needed for renovations at the iconic performing arts facility.
The legal challenge targeting Trump, the Kennedy Center, and other administration officials doesn’t question the necessity of standard maintenance and repairs. However, it contends that the more extensive modifications Trump has alluded to should undergo the standard review procedures that apply to significant projects throughout Washington, D.C.
Trump has indicated that modifications at the Kennedy Center might be so extensive that the building’s steel framework could be “fully exposed.”
“Demolition, new construction, major reconstruction, major renovation, or major aesthetic transformation of the Kennedy Center would permanently destroy historic fabric, degrade the monumental core’s vistas and public grounds, and compromise the Kennedy Center’s memorial purpose and architectural integrity, causing permanent, irreversible harm that no subsequent remedy can fully undo,” the suit argues.
Officials from the White House and Kennedy Center did not immediately provide responses to requests for comment.
Several attorneys participating in Monday’s legal filing have previously pursued other court cases challenging Trump’s efforts to modify Washington’s historic district, including his unexpected demolition of the White House East Wing last year to create space for a ballroom. In the Kennedy Center case, the attorneys referenced a “broader pattern of unauthorized damage to historic buildings in the capital district.”
A federal judge dismissed the ballroom lawsuit last month, determining it was unlikely to prevail on its legal arguments.
Following years of minimal attention to the Kennedy Center during his initial presidency, Trump has exercised significant control over the facility since returning to office. Within just one month of his second term, he removed the center’s existing leadership and installed a personally selected board of trustees that appointed him as chairman. He brought in Richard Grenell as president, a role he maintained until Matt Floca took over the position last week.
The venue’s programming has shifted to include more Trump-aligned events, hosting occasions like the debut screening of first lady Melania Trump’s documentary, “Melania.”
The board has also declared the facility renamed as the Trump Kennedy Center, a modification that experts and legislators say requires congressional approval, and physically installed the president’s name on the building’s exterior.
The arts community’s reaction was immediate and severe. Performers including actor Issa Rae, musician Bela Fleck and author Louise Penny were among many artists who canceled scheduled appearances, while advisors such as musician Ben Folds and singer Renée Fleming stepped down from their positions. This month, National Symphony Orchestra executive director Jean Davidson departed to lead the Los Angeles-based Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts.
