WASHINGTON — The Kennedy Center’s board of trustees voted Thursday to pursue a new way of placing President Donald Trump’s name on the landmark performing arts complex, months after a federal judge ruled that the board could not rename the institution without congressional approval.
Under the latest proposal, the building would retain its official name — the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts — while a new inscription beneath it would read: “Restored and Renovated by President Donald J. Trump.”
That wording marks a shift from the board’s December 2025 vote to formally add Trump’s name to the institution. Metallic letters bearing Trump’s name were installed on the building soon afterward, but they were removed in June following a court order.
The Wall Street Journal also reported that the board voted to designate the site as “President Donald J. Trump Plaza.” The board previously directed officials to recognize what it called Trump’s “existential and unprecedented contributions” to the center’s survival “by all legal means,” according to The Hill.
The new approach appears intended to distinguish an inscription crediting Trump from a formal renaming of the congressionally designated institution. It does not, however, eliminate the legal questions surrounding the move.
Federal law directs the board to prevent additional memorials or memorial-style plaques from being installed in the Kennedy Center’s public areas, with limited exceptions. That provision could become a central issue as the dispute returns to court.
The board also voted Thursday to close the center’s main building for two years as part of a roughly $250 million renovation plan. The newer REACH expansion would remain open for limited programming and continue operating as a memorial to President John F. Kennedy, according to NPR and other reports.
The proposed project includes structural repairs, new marble flooring and nearly $12 million in acoustical improvements. Plans also call for temporarily moving the eight-foot bronze bust of Kennedy from the main foyer. The main building is expected to reopen in summer 2028.
Thursday’s meeting was conducted over Zoom and was not open to the public, NPR reported. The board’s plan is expected to be submitted to U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper for review.
Cooper blocked the board’s earlier renaming effort in May, ruling that the center’s official identity was established by federal law.
“Congress gave the Kennedy Center its name, and only Congress can change it,” Cooper wrote.
The judge also temporarily halted the board’s earlier plan to close the entire center for renovations, finding that trustees had not received enough information to make a well-considered decision. His ruling did not permanently prohibit a closure; it required the board to conduct an informed review that accounted for the center’s duties as both a performing arts venue and a memorial to Kennedy.
Trump took control of the traditionally bipartisan board in 2025, removing members and replacing them with allies. The reconstituted board then elected Trump as its chair.
Rep. Joyce Beatty, D-Ohio, an ex officio trustee, successfully sued to challenge the earlier renaming and closure decisions. She accused the board Thursday of making a “transparent effort to circumvent the Court’s ruling” and said she would continue fighting the new plan.
Beatty’s attorneys said the vote showed disrespect for the courts and that the board would again have to defend its actions before a judge.
The White House defended Trump’s role in the center’s overhaul.
“Under President Trump’s bold leadership, the Kennedy Center is on its way to becoming the finest cultural institution anywhere in the world,” White House spokesperson Liz Huston told CBS News.
The Kennedy Center has appealed Cooper’s ruling. An appeals court previously declined to let Trump’s name remain on the building while the case proceeds, and the lettering was removed June 13.
The legal fight comes amid broader upheaval at the institution. Artists have canceled scheduled appearances, staff members have departed and the Washington National Opera left the center earlier this year. The National Symphony Orchestra, whose finances are tied to the complex, is also facing what sources described to The Washington Post and NPR as a severe financial crisis.
No installation date for the new inscription has been announced.
