Lawyers representing the Trump administration floated as one option a full demolition of the Kennedy Center if a planned renovation championed by President Donald Trump is not allowed to proceed, arguing in a new court filing that the “decrepit structure” would soon be unsafe if not extensively repaired.
It’s the latest in a monthslong back-and-forth between the administration and Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio), an ex officio member of the center’s board and a harsh critic of the changes Trump is making to the storied arts institution.
The Kennedy Center Board voted Aug. 13 to shut down the center for up to two years to carry out the extensive $250 million renovation project. The board, which Trump restocked with allies after firing its previous members en masse last year, also voted to inscribe Trump’s name into the center’s marble facade — the second attempt the panel has made to prominently place the president’s name on the building.
A judge had halted the first attempt, the result of a lawsuit filed by Beatty late last year that sought to prevent many of the most extensive changes Trump and his allies have proposed.
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But the administration argued in a new filing Monday that the changes are necessary to stave off more serious measures — including the possibility of a complete demolition of the site.
“Without those efforts, the Center will deteriorate further into an unsafe, decrepit structure that will be required to be taken down, with a determination to follow on what to build on the site, such as a large outdoor amphitheater overlooking the Potomac River that has been proposed, by some, for many years,” Justice Department lawyers wrote in a Monday court filing.
Mayers added that any such replacement “will fail to adequately honor President John F. Kennedy, but would be simpler and more economical to build, operate, and maintain.”
The Justice Department’s filing claims that Trump is “uniquely qualified to accomplish” the massive renovation project given his “unrivaled expertise and experience in real estate and construction, and prominence as President.”
The filing directly attacked Beatty, saying the congresswoman’s legal efforts “further embroil the Court in a partisan lawsuit lacking merit.” The Justice Department also argued that Beatty should get on board with Trump’s efforts to prevent the center from falling into disrepair to ensure that the administration does not have to pursue the “the construction of a new, but very different kind, of venue.”
“Even Beatty should prefer a healthy, restored Center to a decaying hulk that is doomed to inevitable destruction or collapse,” the lawyers wrote. “The Court should allow the Board and President Trump to bring the Center back to a level of greatness far higher than it has ever had before.”
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