Kennedy Center director says closure will last 1 week ‘unless extended’

The Kennedy Center’s main building will be closed for at least a week for emergency repairs, its executive director said in court filings on Thursday, as the Department of Justice (DOJ) insists the move is unrelated to the Trump-aligned board’s decision to pursue long-term renovations.

Executive Director Matt Floca wrote in a court declaration that he decided on Wednesday to temporarily cut off public access to the center after determining that there were “acute risks to public safety” due to structural damage in certain parts of the performing arts center.

“During this temporary closure, which will last for seven days, unless extended, I intend to assess existing safety risks to those portions of the main building exhibiting severe structural deterioration,” he wrote, adding that a possible extension of that timeline would be evaluated on a weekly basis.

The filing cited a summer assessment of the roof terrace canopy conducted by an engineering firm and a recent water leak that caused a piece of ceiling plaster to collapse in the Grand Foyer as the immediate reasons for the closure.

An email sent to Kennedy Center staff members on Wednesday informing them of the plans also pointed to safety concerns with “soffit panels” and “electrical infrastructure.” It stated that nonessential employees should not report to the building.

The development comes as the Justice Department defended the closure as being independent from the board’s Tuesday vote , arguing that Floca’s decision complies with a federal judge’s previous order barring the Kennedy Center from shutting down for a prolonged period.

“No part of the Court’s preliminary injunction order forbids a temporary closure like this one,” DOJ lawyer Brantley Mayers wrote.

Fencing went up around the building on Wednesday, a day after President Trump’s handpicked board voted for a second time to close the center for repairs.

Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio), an ex officio board member challenging the closure and the board’s renewed attempts to add Trump’s name back to the facade, has asked U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper to hold an emergency hearing over the board’s latest vote.

“Closing the Kennedy Center without Judge Cooper’s approval appears to directly violate his order. This is an assault on the rule of law,” her attorneys Nathaniel Zelinsky and Norm Eisen said in a statement Wednesday. “The board cannot simply ignore Judge Cooper’s rulings whenever it suits them. In this country, no one — including the president — is above the law.”

Officials have described Trump as the “sole hope” for the Kennedy Center’s long-term survival, arguing that not putting his name on the building would hamper fundraising efforts as the institution faces “certain fiscal collapse.”

The president was spotted Wednesday night through an Air Force One window looking at a poster board with the words “Kennedy Center DEMOLISH,” though the full image was not clear.

“I think that the Trump administration should certainly have recognition because, frankly, if we don’t do that, it’s going to close,” Trump told reporters Wednesday in Charlotte, N.C. “It’ll end up being ripped down.”