President Donald Trump announced the Trump–Kennedy Center would shutter for two years for maintenance. (J. David Ake/Getty Images)
"If we don’t close, the quality of Construction will not be nearly as good, and the time to completion, because of interruptions with Audiences from the many Events using the Facility, will be much longer. The temporary closure will produce a much faster and higher quality result!" Trump said on Truth Social Sunday explaining why the complex needs to shutter for two years.
A Trump–Kennedy official told Fox News Digital that the complex, which first opened in 1971, has suffered decades of neglect by former leadership that has left the building in "extremely poor condition."
The official described the renovations as "a restoration and beautification project," that will include updating its broken elevators, updating its HVAC system and taking on $250 million in maintenance issues that the official said were ignored by previous leadership.
President Donald Trump announced that the venue would close July 4. (Mark Schiefelbein/The Associated Press )
"With President Trump’s proven record of delivering projects under budget and ahead of schedule, the finished Center will reflect the true beauty of America," she added. "The short-term inconvenience of a temporary closure will result in a revitalized cultural landmark built to serve generations to come."
Ambassador Richard Grenell serves as the Trump–Kennedy Center's president and praised Trump and Congress for appropriating $257 million for the renovations. He added that leadership is not only focused on saving the center from ruin, but to "make it the finest Arts Institution in the world."
WASHINGTON NATIONAL OPERA TO DEPART TRUMP–KENNEDY CENTER AMID REPORTED FINANCIAL DIFFICULTIES
Exterior of the Kennedy Center on the Potomac River, Washington, D.C., undated. (Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
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The name change set off swift rebuke among Democrats, with nonvoting board members including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries and others claiming the move was illegal as it did not earn congressional approval ahead of time. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., introduced legislation in January that seeks to bar sitting presidents from putting their own names on federal buildings, linking it to the Trump-Kennedy Center name update.
"For Trump to put his name on federal buildings is arrogant, and it is illegal," Sanders said in a press release last month. "We must put an end to this narcissism — and that’s what this bill does.
The center said that the board agreed Trump saved the institution from financial ruin during his second term.
Fox News Digital's Amanda Macias contributed to this report.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-kennedy-center-details-massive-repairs-warns-venue-wont-survive-without-fixes