The Kennedy Center board of trustees unanimously voted on Monday in favor of a controversial plan to temporarily shutter the arts institution for renovations, rubber-stamping a $257m project initiated by Donald Trump to remake the arts institution in line with other grand plans for Washington.
In a statement, the center said it had voted for “a comprehensive revitalization project” lasting two years that would come after an Independence Day celebration in July, with “a grand re-opening to follow”.
The notice added that the board’s decision to pause operations would “allow for the most comprehensive and efficient renovation effort, setting the stage for a revitalized national cultural and entertainment complex for all Americans to enjoy”.
“From day one, our mission was to make the Trump Kennedy Center a place every American could be proud of, and this renovation is the fulfillment of that promise,” outgoing president Ric Grenell said in the statement. “What comes next will be worth the wait.”
Trump’s civic improvements program has so far included demolishing the White House’s East Wing to make away for a 100,000 sq ft ballroom, to be called the White House State Ballroom, and digging up the Rose Garden for an entertaining area where ladies wont risk sinking their heels into the lawn.
There are also proposals for a vast “Victory Arch” near the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington national cemetery. Plans have also been mooted to replace existing columns at the White House’s front entrance with more ornate-style Corinthian columns.
As the meeting of trustees began, Trump said: “You have to close it.”
He said: “I think everybody agrees, but subject to board approval, we determined that the fastest way to bring the Trump-Kennedy Center to the highest level of beauty and grandeur is to cease the entertainment operations for a two-year period of time as we complete really high quality construction.
“The best way to do it is close it – do it properly, and reopen and have a grand reopening. When it’s finished, it’s going to be far better than it was when it was originally built.”
Since returning to office, Trump set about significantly altering the makeup of the Kennedy center’s board members, making a vote against his renovation plane unlikely, and voted to rename it “The Donald J Trump and the John F Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts.”
Artists and performing groups canceled bookings in protest, including a run of the musical Hamilton. The executive director of the National Symphony Orchestra, Jean Davidson, left to head the Los Angeles-based Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts.
Instead, the center became an extension of the White House’s cultural agenda. Trump convinced Fifa president Gianni Infantino to hold the World Cup draw there in December. Trump hosted the Kennedy Center Honors there himself, addressed House Republicans, and premiered documentary of first lady Melania Trump there.
Last week, Trump appointee Grenell, who played a key role in the push to overhaul the center and target “woke” culture, announced he was stepping down as president. He was replaced by operations chief Matt Floca, who was confirmed on Monday.
