New photos of President Donald Trump on Wednesday renewed fears that he plans to demolish the Kennedy Center as part of his bid to attach his name to the institution.
Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio), who is fighting the closure in her role as an ex-officio board member, submitted the image on Thursday as part of her emergency plea to stop the venue from shutting down.
In the photos, which Brendan Smialowski of AFP shot outside Trump’s aircraft, the president is looking at a poster board that is partly obscured by the plane’s window. The photos show an aerial view of the building with a title above that reads “Kennedy Center” next to a partially covered word that appears to be “Demolish.”
The legal turmoil over whether Trump’s name can be inscribed to the venue, which a federal judge has repeatedly disallowed, has stirred speculation that the president may move to demolish the performing arts center entirely.
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The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the poster board’s contents.
The Kennedy Center Board of Trustees voted on Wednesday to temporarily shutter the institution to allow for extensive renovations that are expected to cost $250 million.
However, Trump, who filled the board with allies who replaced previous members he dismissed last year, has stated that the construction would not begin unless his name is affixed to the building. The board has argued that the Kennedy Center is on the precipice of “financial collapse” and that recognizing Trump is vital to secure his fundraising prowess.
Trump told reporters on Wednesday that his administration should be recognized on the building.
“Because frankly, if we don’t do that, it’s going to close,” Trump said. “It will end up being ripped down.”
Beatty also included those remarks in her Thursday court filings.
The Justice Department subsequently asked Thursday for Beatty’s emergency hearing to be denied, saying the Kennedy Center must be temporarily closed to “address significant safety hazards,” according to court records.
The rebuttal referenced an incident earlier this month when a chunk of ceiling collapsed inside a main hallway following water damage from severe lightning storms that hit Washington.
“There is no emergency caused by Defendants’ temporary closure of the Center; the only emergency is the risk to the public and the Center’s employees and artists if it remained fully open without further safety assessment,” the Justice Department said.
Beatty’s attorneys quickly responded to the administration’s court filing and repeated their request for an emergency hearing.
“This latest explanation cannot be squared with the record. Defendants’ rationale that they are only temporarily closing the Kennedy Center is a plain pretext to justify shutting down the Center permanently,” Beatty’s attorneys wrote. “The facts before the Court are deeply concerning.”
Black fencing has been installed surrounding the Kennedy Center, and the building was closed to the public on Thursday.
The Reach expansion campus next door continues to be open for programming, according to a Kennedy Center volunteer who spoke to The Washington Sun. But the volunteer said the center’s staff have received little information about what is happening.
“Nobody knows anything,” the volunteer said Thursday. “Staff is not being told anything.”
Security guards stationed outside the Kennedy Center said they were similarly in the dark. Asked about the board-approved renovations, one guard told The Sun he had “no idea” why the campus was closed.
This story has been updated with additional filings.
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