Kennedy Center won’t be torn down during $200 million renovation, Trump says

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said Monday that the renovation of the Kennedy Center is expected to cost about $200 million and include new heating and air conditioning systems.

Trump, who announced Sunday that the performing arts venue would be closed for renovations for two years starting in July, said the project was fully funded but did not specify the source of the funding.

He added that the project would not involve demolishing the iconic building on the Potomac River.

“I’m not going to rip it off,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. “I’ll use steel. So we use structure.”

“We use some of the marble, and some of the marble falls off, but when it opens, it will be brand new and really beautiful,” he said. “We’re going to have brand new air conditioning and heating.”

During Trump’s second term, he aims to physically reshape parts of the nation’s capital, including the White House.

After Trump initially said the East Wing renovation would not interfere with the structure of the White House, that portion of the building was demolished in October as part of his plan to build a ballroom. This project, which has increased in size and cost since its announcement, is now expected to cost $400 million, nearly double the initial estimate.

Trump, who also plans to build a triumphal arch along the Potomac River, said the ballroom project was funded by him and various donors. Comcast Corp., the parent company of NBCUniversal, was on the list of top donors. It’s unclear how much Comcast and other donors contributed.

Trump said Monday that he considered leaving the Kennedy Center open during renovations but ultimately decided against it, saying “you can’t do the same quality of work” as when it’s closed.

Trump has taken a particular interest in the Kennedy Center since his return to power. Last year, he replaced the center’s board of directors with a hand-picked group of members who named him president, and changed its programming to exclude Pride events. In December, the board voted to add his name to the center. It was affixed to the facade a day later.

Several artists have canceled appearances at the Kennedy Center, including “Wicked” musical composer Stephen Schwartz and “Lincoln” composer Philip Glass, amid Trump’s takeover of the venue.

The name change also drew condemnation from Kennedy family members and lawmakers. Rep. Joyce Beatty, D-Ohio, sued the administration over the name change, saying it was illegal without congressional approval since Congress established the center and its name.

“The Kennedy Center is funded by Congress, and Congress should have been consulted on any decision to close its operations or undertake major renovations, particularly for two years,” Beatty said in a statement Sunday after Trump announced the renovation plans.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska also criticized Trump’s plan to stop all performances over a two-year period. She said that although Republicans approved funding for the renovations, a temporary closure was never discussed.

Murkowski, who chairs the Senate Appropriations subcommittee that oversees funding for projects such as the Kennedy Center renovation, said “as the person responsible for this, I have the right to ask these questions and get answers.”

“We’re spending money incredibly aggressively on some things that, if you asked Americans to prioritize, they wouldn’t put an ark at the top of their list,” said Murkowski, who has clashed with Trump in the past. “They wouldn’t put expanding the White House ballroom at the top of their list, they wouldn’t put a complete overhaul of the Kennedy Center on their list.”