Judge Rules Against Immediate Demolition Threat of Kennedy Center

President Donald Trump was photographed aboard Air Force One reviewing a Kennedy Center printout upon his arrival in Maryland. This image was captured by Brendan Smialowski of AFP via Getty Images. On Thursday, a federal judge determined that President Trump lacks the authority to demolish the Kennedy Center without providing a 30-day notice, following Trump’s renewed threat to dismantle the arts center.

This legal decision is part of ongoing legal activities creating uncertainty about the center’s future. The Kennedy Center’s board of directors voted earlier to close the venue, citing its deteriorating physical state and financial struggles as reasons they cannot keep it operational. Legal filings from both the board and its opponents soon followed. Additionally, Trump indicated on Wednesday that the complex could face destruction if his name is not displayed prominently on its main building.

Trump addressed reporters, stating, “For the Trump administration, for me, to get involved, and to take on long term, and to carry it, or to raise money to carry it, I think that the Trump administration should certainly have recognition. Because frankly, if we don’t do that, it’s going to close, it will end up being ripped down.” Trump further claimed that the Kennedy Center had lost “hundreds of millions” of dollars but provided no evidence to substantiate this assertion. During the same discussion, he labeled Carnegie Hall, New York’s prestigious venue, as a similar “loser.”

However, by Thursday afternoon, U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper ruled that any demolition or construction at the Kennedy Center requires a 30-day advance notice. The board’s decision to cease operations on Tuesday followed Cooper’s previous ruling, which determined the board could not place Trump’s name on the building’s exterior. Following this decision, U.S. Rep. Joyce Beatty from Ohio, also an ex-officio board member, requested an emergency hearing, claiming the closure breached a prior court order, but Cooper denied this plea, instead mandating a 30-day notification.

Beatty submitted evidence to the court including social media photographs showing Trump on Air Force One reviewing a placard which allegedly reads “Kennedy Center DEMOLISHED.” Although the legitimacy of these images is uncertain, they were included in federal court records. In his Thursday ruling, Cooper instructed the Kennedy Center to alert both Plaintiffs and the Court of any changes in plans concerning demolition or new construction. A comprehensive status report is due by next Wednesday from the board.

Additionally, an employee at Washington Litigation Group, representing Beatty, filed a report stating she witnessed construction machinery repeatedly striking the building’s pillars on Wednesday while gates were installed around the Kennedy Center. Meanwhile, Matt Floca, current executive director and COO of the Kennedy Center, declared the closure as “temporary” due to safety concerns.

Judge Cooper is also involved in a separate lawsuit filed last May by eight architectural and cultural organizations. He ruled that any demolition or construction notice must also be provided to these groups, alongside Beatty and the court. Following recent events, these organizations, including The American Institute of Architects (AIA) and the National Trust for Historic Preservation, requested the appointment of a neutral officer to safeguard the institution. They state that Trump and the Kennedy Center board are failing in their responsibilities to preserve this cultural landmark dedicated to President John F. Kennedy.

In a Thursday statement to NPR, the groups declared: “President Trump chose to make himself a Kennedy Center trustee, and the reconstituted Board elected him Chair. With those positions come legal and ethical responsibilities. … A trustee cannot sit still while the institution fails. Nor can a trustee withhold the exercise of fiduciary responsibilities to obtain a personal honor.”