On September 15, 2026, U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper barred the Kennedy Center's Trump-appointed board from inscribing “renovated and restored by Donald J. Trump” on the main building and from renaming the grounds “President Donald J. Trump Plaza.” Within about an hour, the board, which Trump chairs, voted to close the main building immediately for two years. Trump then announced that the renovation would not go forward at all unless the courts approve his name.
Cooper's 22-page order enforces the permanent injunction he issued on May 29, when he ruled that Congress named the center and only Congress can rename it (see The Kennedy Center Board Trump Chairs Adds His Name to the Building, and a Federal Judge Orders It Removed). It rests on a 1983 law barring additional memorials in the center's public areas, which Cooper held covers the whole campus. “Simply put, Defendants cannot install memorials for President Trump or anyone or anything else at the Kennedy Center without Congress's blessing,” he wrote. “Resisting this conclusion, the government plays word games.” And: “Linguistic gymnastics cannot extricate the Kennedy Center's Board from an operative judicial order or the governing statute it was designed to enforce.” He wrote that the government offered “no proof that current or future donations hinge on President Trump's name being on the building.” He did not rule on a third proposed inscription tied to an endowment fund, because the fund has raised nothing, but required 60 days' notice before anything is installed. The Justice Department appealed that night.
The closure vote was the board's third since February. The board cited a partial ceiling collapse in the Grand Foyer this month, and its resolution said consultants considered the building “unsafe for continued occupancy,” a characterization Rep. Joyce Beatty's lawyers said the consultant had expressly disclaimed. The resolution promises continued programming at the REACH and offsite, and continued support for the National Symphony Orchestra. The closure cannot take effect until Cooper lifts a separate order keeping the center open; CNN reported the Justice Department was expected to ask by Friday. NPR reported most administrative staff had already been fired or left. No vote tally was reported; Trump said the board agreed “almost unanimously.”
Trump joined the virtual meeting. CNN, citing three sources, reported he blamed Beatty, an ex officio trustee who brought the lawsuit, for involving the courts; one source said, “It was f**king crazy.” AP, citing a participant, reported Trump called Beatty “incompetent” and “holding up everything,” and she replied, “You're holding up the whole country.” Beatty told CNN on the record that Trump “threw a tantrum.”
That afternoon Trump posted: “The Board of The Kennedy Center today agreed, almost unanimously, to close the Building for Safety reasons, and so that it can begin the process of Reconstruction. The closing will take place immediately, however, the Renovation and Reconstruction, which is a very large and complex job, cannot begin until such time as the D.C. Circuit rules on the Board's approved name. If the ruling is a negative one, which it should not be, and is not overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court, the Reconstruction and the Renovation of The Kennedy Center will not take place.” He added that “17 Million Dollars, raised by President Trump, has been put into The Kennedy Center account to keep it afloat,” a figure no outlet independently confirmed. Earlier that day he had called Cooper “A very hostile and conflicted Judge” and warned that without his name “the Building is destined to doom.” Congress has appropriated about $257 million for the center's capital repairs.
Beatty said, “Donald Trump only cares about the Kennedy Center for his vanity. That is wrong and it is a breach of his fiduciary duty as a trustee.” White House spokesman Davis Ingle said, “Trump-deranged Dumocrats like Joyce Beatty oppose anything that celebrates the greatness of our country because they put America Last.” Roma Daravi, the center's vice president of public relations, said, “The Board's decision today reflects sound judgment and a clear prioritization of safety above all else.”
The stance matches the one the center took before the meeting, when it tied any rescue to “appropriate recognition” for Trump (see Kennedy Center Warns of Collapse Within Weeks, and Says Trump Will Lead a Rescue Only With 'Appropriate Recognition').
Update (September 17, 2026): the main building closed to the public the next morning. An AP reporter “was told by a security guard that it was closed,” and fencing and gates went up around it; the separate REACH annex stayed open. A White House official told The Hill it was a “temporary safety-related closure” of at least seven days, “distinct from the closure on which the Board recently voted.” In a September 17 court filing, the Justice Department said the center's executive director, Matt Floca, made the decision because of “acute risks to public safety resulting from continued structural deterioration at the Center,” citing an engineering assessment of the exterior soffit panels, “2,500-pound slabs of concrete hanging 60 feet in the air.” The department told the court, “Defendants are in compliance with this order,” and that “No part of the Court's preliminary injunction order forbids a temporary closure like this one.” The judge's May order bars the board from carrying out its closure decision until he lifts it; the government's motion to lift it is due September 18.
Rep. Joyce Beatty asked for an emergency hearing, and her lawyers said, “Closing the Kennedy Center without Judge Cooper's approval appears to directly violate his order.” No court has ruled on that question. The same day, speaking to reporters in North Carolina, Trump said, “I think that the Trump administration should certainly have recognition. Because frankly, if we don't do that, it's going to close. It'll end up being ripped down,” adding, “It's in very, very bad shape, very dangerous shape.” That night an AFP photographer captured, through an Air Force One window, a large board whose visible red lettering reads “…y Center DEMOLIS…”; the White House has not explained it, and Newsweek reported that neither the White House nor the center “has publicly confirmed any demolition plans.” Beatty, describing the September 15 meeting, told CNN, “He threw a tantrum. It was like an immature child.”
Update (September 17, 2026): Judge Christopher R. Cooper ruled, in a minute order rather than a written opinion. He denied Beatty's motion for an emergency hearing, but ordered the government to file a detailed status report by September 23 “supported by a sworn declaration from a knowledgeable representative of the Kennedy Center” on the closure and the emergency repairs. He then reached back to a promise the government had made in the companion preservation case and made it binding: “To avoid any confusion on that score given more recent events, the Court hereby ORDERS Defendants to provide such notice in writing to Plaintiffs in both cases more than 30 days before the implementation of any changes to the scope of the project plans presented to the Court in D.C. Preservation League, including but not limited to any 'demolition' of the Center's main building.” He also allowed Beatty to take discovery on the Air Force One photograph and Trump's remarks.
The order is narrower than much of the coverage suggested. It does not forbid demolition and it is not a standalone demolition ban; it requires 30 days' written warning before any change to the project's scope, with demolition named as an example. Beatty said, “It is simply outrageous that we have gotten to the point of consistent judicial intervention to protect this historic institution from getting bulldozed by the President.” White House spokeswoman Liz Huston said, “For years, Democrats let the Kennedy Center rot, allowing water damage and crumbling infrastructure to turn a national treasure into a building in decay.”
The photograph is now a court exhibit. Beatty's lawyers filed it the morning of September 17 as a notice of supplemental authority. It was taken by AFP photographer Brendan Smialowski through an Air Force One window at Joint Base Andrews the previous night, after Trump returned from his North Carolina rally. What is legible in the filed image is a large white board with hand-lettered red text reading “…y Center DEMOLIS…”, the ends cut off by the window frame, above what appears to be an aerial photograph. The Guardian noted that the image “does not establish that demolition was being planned.” The White House did not respond to CNBC's request to explain the board.
The government's account of the closure came in a sworn declaration from Charles Matthew Floca, the Kennedy Center's executive director and chief operating officer, who said the decision was his alone. “During this temporary closure, which will last for seven days, unless extended, I intend to assess existing safety risks in those portions of the main building exhibiting severe structural deterioration,” he wrote, adding that he would “reevaluate the need for continued closure on a weekly basis.” He cited a Walter P Moore engineering assessment finding “severe corrosion in 46 panels and mild-to-moderate corrosion in 93 panels (out of a total of 278 panels),” with one-third requiring immediate replacement. Floca also disavowed an alarm that emptied the building two days earlier: “On September 15, 2026, an alarm was improperly triggered in the Center... I did not authorize that alarm, nor am I aware of a legitimate reason why that alarm may have been triggered.”
Beatty's reply called the seven-day framing pretextual, and laid out the record against it. “After initially telling Plaintiff that the closure was the result of someone pulling a fire alarm, Defendants now say the closure is a 'distinct decision by management to address imminent life-safety risks,'” it said. It noted the building stayed open for twelve days after the September 4 plaster collapse the government now cites as urgent, and that “One does not relocate retail and transit operations or install barricades (which seemingly would have needed to be acquired in advance) for a one-week inspection.” Its summary of the government's position: “They closed the building first and plan to look for a reason afterward. This is a shell game.” The judge did not resolve the dispute; he ordered the status report instead.
Separately, the eight preservation organizations suing in the companion case, among them the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the American Institute of Architects, said at a September 17 briefing that the court should consider appointing a receiver or replacing the center's leadership. Their statement said that if the leadership “is unwilling or unable to exercise its fiduciary duty to protect the historic building and the grounds,” the court should act, warning that “The irrevocable loss of this iconic building, whether by intent, neglect or mismanagement, appears increasingly possible.” Their counsel said they had not yet filed the request and were still vetting the legal theory.
Update (September 19, 2026): people turned out, and Trump answered.
On Friday evening a crowd formed a human chain around the building. AP reported that “Thousands of people joined outside the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts Friday evening to protest President Donald Trump's plans for the facility.” TheWrap put the number in the hundreds; the accounts differ on size, not on what happened. Chris Raleigh, a co-founder of Hands Off the Arts, explained the fear driving it: “Look at the East Wing,” he said. “We got up one morning and there was a giant hole there.” Laura Steinberg, a volunteer of ten years, said, “This reminds me of that picture from Tiananmen Square, where that young man stood in front of the tank... I'll stand in front of the wrecking ball if it's going to come to that.”
Trump defended putting his name on the building and disparaged it in the same breath: “The place is a dump. It's been a dump for years. It's lost money for years. I can turn it around, fix it. But if I do the job, I think the Trump administration... should be recognized.” He added, “Why should I do everything and then for the rest of my life, have to go out and raise money?”
Members of the Kennedy family objected, though not in one voice and not in a single statement. Their criticism came in separate social media posts from individual relatives. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who serves in the cabinet, has taken the opposite position.
Update (September 21, 2026): the government has now asked the court to let the closure go ahead. On the night of September 18 the Justice Department filed a motion to dissolve the May injunction and a renewed motion for partial summary judgment. Its memorandum opens, “The Kennedy Center has become dangerously dilapidated and decrepit,” and argues from its own consultants' projections that “a phased closure would result in a $300 million funding shortfall to conduct the necessary repairs, as opposed to a gap of less than $30 million if the building were completely closed.” Those are the government's figures, not independent ones, and no ruling has issued. The sworn status report the judge ordered is due September 23.
The same day, about 14 employees were laid off, including the center's chief spokesperson, according to The Washington Post (three people familiar) and CNN (two); the center did not comment. The Post found that “At least nine of the 14 employees who were laid off started after Trump took control of the center in February 2025.”
In the Oval Office that Friday, Trump restated the condition: “I can save it easily, but why should we be doing that and then raise money for the rest of our lives to keep it afloat? Because that's what you have to do, if we get no recognition.” He added, “I actually like the name of Kennedy and Trump, Trump and Kennedy, because it showed bipartisanship.” AP noted that “He did not address a question about demolishing it.” A third on-scene count of the Friday protest, from The Art Newspaper, put the human chain at “around 1,500” people. On September 21 Trump shared a Just the News article on Biden-era inspection reports describing disrepair at the building, which is the administration's case that the closure is about safety.
Update (September 25, 2026): Congress may step in. Sen. Jeff Merkley, the top Democrat on the Senate appropriations subcommittee that funds the Kennedy Center, plans to introduce a bill and seek unanimous consent as early as Monday, September 28. Its text, shared with Forbes: “A memorial to honor a President of the United States designated by an Act of Congress may not be demolished unless authorized by an Act of Congress.” That would also cover the Lincoln and Jefferson memorials. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, the subcommittee's Republican chair, backs it; she said Congress authorized and funded renovation, but “what was not authorized is a demolition of the Kennedy Center,” adding, “If a federal facility is going to be demolished, it cannot be without congressional oversight here.” A unanimous-consent request fails if one senator objects, and the bill had not been introduced as of this update.
The prospect of demolition was first put on paper by the government itself. In an August 24 filing on behalf of the board, Justice Department attorney Brantley Mayers wrote that without the renovation and recognition for Trump, “the Center will deteriorate further into an unsafe, decrepit structure that will be required to be taken down,” with something like an outdoor amphitheater to follow. A center spokesperson said the language “describes a hypothetical scenario of what could happen if the center's desperately needed renovation is blocked by partisan interests.” No demolition has been announced; Trump has said that without recognition the center “will end up being ripped down.”
Update (September 28, 2026): former employees say the repairs now used to justify the closure were known, funded and then set aside. In a September 24 letter to the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee and the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, sent through attorney David Seide with internal documents, anonymous former staff wrote that the repairs “were not treated as priorities nor as acute risks to public safety.” According to CNN and to the New York Times as reported by Mediaite, executive director Matt Floca secured $9.3 million for roof replacement through last year's budget law and approved $295,000 to design replacements for the leaking overhangs, then halted the work in April. The center disputes that account. “The premise that we delayed the design work is incorrect,” it said, and Floca: “The Kennedy Center has known for years that the roof overhang leaked. What we did not know until this summer was how far the damage had spread inside it.” Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse wrote to Floca the same day: “Your failure to respond to my previous requests for financial documents, and the unexplained sudden departure of the CFO, suggest that something is seriously wrong at the Center.”
Trump's own descriptions have moved with the dispute. In December, beside FIFA's Gianni Infantino on the center's red carpet, he said, “It was falling apart, and now it's pretty much back,” and, “We've done a really great renovation job on it,” the Washington Post reported. On September 15, 2026 he posted, “If the Building were open, innocent people would have been killed,” and, of someone near a plaster fall, “He was, therefore, 60 seconds away from certain death.”
In a September 23 court filing, Floca extended the “temporary” closure to September 30 and said he will reassess weekly: “Because the collection of information is ongoing and I remain concerned about the documented hazards and inability to provide safe egress at this time in light of those hazards, I will be extending the temporary closure for an additional week, until September 30, 2026.” In Congress, Roll Call reported, House Interior appropriations subcommittee chair Mike Simpson, an Idaho Republican, said in an interview last month, “We're not going to tear down and bulldoze the Kennedy Center.”
Update (September 29, 2026): the Senate bill was blocked by a single objection. On the night of September 28, Merkley asked for unanimous consent to pass the Protecting Presidential Memorials Act, which he wrote with Sen. Lisa Murkowski, an Alaska Republican. Its operative line: “A memorial to honor a President of the United States designated by an Act of Congress may not be demolished unless authorized by an Act of Congress.” Sen. Mike Lee of Utah objected, and objected again to Merkley's request for a debate and a later recorded vote. Lee gave no floor remarks; in a statement he said, “Democrats should join us in lowering the cost of living and securing American elections instead of wasting the Senate's time with partisan scaremongering they haven't even tried to run through the appropriate committee process.” Merkley: “First, he destroyed its programming, and now, he wants to destroy the building itself. All because the law says Trump can't put his name on the building.”
The former employees' letter adds an allegation this entry had not recorded: that appropriated repair money was diverted to “unplanned cosmetic changes” Trump requested, repainting the main building's columns white. That is an allegation made through counsel by unnamed former staff. Floca says the repairs were not dropped but folded into a larger plan after the contractor's bid came in at nearly three times the expected cost: “That was a change in the approach to procuring and delivering the work, not a determination that the work was unnecessary.” Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse gave him until October 8 to answer the senators' questions.
Update (September 30, 2026): the administration has appealed. In its opening brief to the D.C. Circuit, filed September 28, the Justice Department challenges both the May injunction and Judge Cooper's September 15 order. It argues that “without appropriate recognition, the Kennedy Center will be back where it was at the beginning,” describes the building as “dangerously dilapidated, outdated, and decrepit,” and warns that without the administration it “will eventually collapse, with a determination to follow on how to proceed, and what to do with the site.” It calls Rep. Joyce Beatty, who brought the suit, “a partisan bent on reflexively opposing President Trump at every turn.” The brief does not use the word “demolish.”