Judge Orders Trump Administration to Give 30 Days’ Notice Before Kennedy Center Demolition

A federal judge has ordered President Donald Trump’s administration to give more than 30 days’ written notice before demolishing the Kennedy Center’s main building or making major changes to its renovation plans, one day after Trump said the Washington performing arts venue could be “ripped down.”

U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper issued the order Thursday as concerns over the building’s future intensified following its abrupt closure. The requirement creates a window for Rep. Joyce Beatty, an Ohio Democrat challenging changes at the Kennedy Center, and historic preservation groups to return to court before potentially irreversible work begins.

Cooper also allowed Beatty to seek discovery related to a possible demolition and ordered Kennedy Center officials to file a detailed status report by Sept. 23 explaining the temporary closure and emergency repairs underway at the building.

The ruling followed new court filings citing Trump’s comments Wednesday about the center and a photograph showing him aboard Air Force One examining a large printout that appeared to include the words “Kennedy Center DEMOLISHED.”

Trump had told reporters earlier that day that his administration deserved recognition for efforts to renovate and support the center.

“Because frankly, if we don’t do that, it’s going to close,” Trump said. “It’ll end up being ripped down.”

Beatty’s lawyers submitted one of the Air Force One photographs to Cooper and asked the judge to clarify the limits of his earlier orders governing the Kennedy Center.

Cooper responded by requiring written notice more than 30 days before officials implement any change to the scope of renovation plans previously presented to the court, “including but not limited to any ‘demolition’ of the Center’s main building.”

The notice requirement gives the plaintiffs time to challenge a major structural change before work begins. It also places demolition within the ongoing court oversight of renovation plans that have already become the subject of separate lawsuits.

Kennedy Center Executive Director Matt Floca said in a sworn court declaration that the current closure is temporary and was ordered to address “acute risks to public safety.” The seven-day shutdown will be reevaluated weekly as officials assess conditions inside the building.

Floca has said the closure is focused on safety rather than demolition. Officials have cited structural deterioration, water damage and a recent partial ceiling collapse among the problems requiring immediate attention.

The emergency shutdown came shortly after the Kennedy Center board voted to close the main building for up to two years while carrying out a $257 million renovation.

Beatty sought an emergency hearing over the closure, arguing that the board’s plans could conflict with Cooper’s earlier order limiting its ability to shutter the institution. Cooper denied the request for a hearing Thursday while imposing the new notice requirement and demanding additional information about the current closure.

The dispute is part of a broader legal battle over changes to the Kennedy Center since Trump took control of its board.

Cooper ruled in May that the board lacked authority to rename the congressionally established memorial after Trump and ordered his name removed from the building’s facade. The administration appealed.

The board later approved an inscription crediting Trump with renovating and restoring the center and proposed naming the surrounding grounds the “President Donald J. Trump Plaza.” Cooper blocked those plans this week, finding that Congress controls changes to the Kennedy Center’s statutory memorial designation.

The latest order moves the immediate court fight beyond the building’s name and toward its physical future.

Any major departure from the renovation plans already presented to the court, including demolition of the main building, now requires more than 30 days’ advance warning. Kennedy Center officials must also explain the current shutdown and emergency work to Cooper in their Sept. 23 filing.