Beatty Seeks Emergency Hearing Over 7-Day Kennedy Center Closure as 5-Foot Ceiling Plaster Fell
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Sep 16
Beatty Seeks Emergency Hearing Over 7-Day Kennedy Center Closure as 5-Foot Ceiling Plaster Fell
3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Sep 16
Summary
Judge Christopher Cooper gave the Kennedy Center until Thursday morning to answer Rep. Joyce Beatty’s request for an emergency hearing on whether the closure defies his May order.
A 5-foot section of water-damaged ceiling plaster fell during a storm, prompting the center to shut the building to the public over what officials called dire safety concerns.
Executive director Matt Floca told employees the closure is intended to last seven days, with any extension to be reviewed weekly as officials assess the damage.
Beatty, an ex officio board member suing the center, argues the Trump-allied board cannot close the institution without meaningful scrutiny after Cooper temporarily barred a shutdown in May.
The dispute deepens a broader fight over President Trump’s push to close the Kennedy Center for a $257 million renovation, which he says is needed because the building is in a “virtual state of collapse.”