Kennedy Center Board Votes To Close Main Building

President Trump said the board agreed "almost unanimously" to close the building due to safety reasons and to begin reconstruction.

On Tuesday, the Kennedy Center board voted to immediately close the main building of the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington D.C..

Shortly after the vote, President Trump said the board agreed “almost unanimously” to close the building due to safety reasons and to begin reconstruction.

The closure will take effect immediately. However, renovation and reconstruction will not begin until the D.C. Circuit rules in the ongoing dispute over the proposal to use Trump’s name at the center.

Trump said he has raised $17 million that has been deposited into the Kennedy Center’s account “to keep it afloat” as it faces financial struggles. Trump could provide the funds but he wants his name on the building for recognition.

However, a judge ruled that action requires Congressional approval. His name was added then removed, and the move is stuck in controversial debate. The closure comes less than two weeks after part of the center’s ceiling collapsed during a rainstorm.