The Kennedy Center board will meet Monday in the White House East Room to vote on a proposed two-year closure to allow President Trump’s renovation plans to proceed. The measure is expected to pass because most voting trustees were appointed by the president. Representative Joyce Beatty and other non-voting Democrats have challenged the plan; a federal judge ordered Beatty be allowed to attend the meeting and review the renovation documents. Trump has released exterior renderings but detailed interior designs have not been made public.
Kennedy Center Board Set To Vote On Two-Year Closure For Trump-Led Renovation
A worker walks through the Hall of States at the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, renamed The Donald J. Trump and The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, by the Trump administration, after U.S. President Donald Trump said he planned to close the Kennedy Center for two years for reconstruction starting in July, in Washington, D.C., U.S., February 2, 2026. REUTERS/Al Drago
WASHINGTON, March 16 — The board of trustees for the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts is scheduled to vote Monday on a temporary two-year closure so President Donald Trump’s proposed renovation can proceed, two people familiar with the agenda said. The meeting is planned for the East Room of the White House, and the renovation package is widely expected to be approved because the president has publicly championed the project and most voting trustees were appointed by him.
In December the board approved a controversial renaming of the building — which Congress dedicated as a living memorial to President John F. Kennedy after his 1963 assassination — to the Trump-Kennedy Center. The president has said the center would close after the July 4 holiday to allow contractors to complete work without interruption.
"The temporary closure will produce a much faster and higher quality result," Trump said when he announced the shutdown on February 1.
Several Democrats who hold non-voting seats on the board, including Representative Joyce Beatty, have challenged the plan. A federal judge last week ordered the administration to permit Beatty to attend Monday’s meeting and to provide her with the renovation documents, underscoring legal questions about congressional oversight of the institution.
"No president has the authority to shut Congress out of the governance of the Kennedy Center, much less unilaterally rename or demolish it," Beatty said after the court order.
The full scope of the renovations remains unclear. Trump has described the building as "run down" and released exterior renderings that largely preserve the center’s white marble façade and classical columns. He has not provided detailed interior renderings, though he has suggested changes such as adding white marble armrests to seating and replacing carpet, walls, chandeliers, stages and ventilation systems.
The vote — and the accompanying court action — highlights tensions over presidential influence on cultural landmarks and the role of Congress in their governance. If the closure is approved, performances and public access would be suspended for about two years while renovation work is carried out.
Reporting by Bo Erickson; Editing by Colleen Jenkins and Alistair Bell.
Help us improve.
