Kennedy Center Board Lacks Key Documents Ahead of Two‑Year Closure Vote

A federal judge ordered a review in May of whether the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts should close for two years. The center’s board is scheduled to vote on the closure on 13 August, but board members have not received any new assessments of the impact.

Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, a Democrat from Rhode Island who sits on the Senate committee overseeing the center, said the board sent a “sparsely equipped agenda” that omitted studies on program effects, ticket‑sale losses and a $250 million renovation plan. Whitehouse noted he has been requesting information for more than nine months and still has received none, and that three other congressional board members report the same lack of documentation.

Kennedy Center spokesperson Roma Daravi said the finance committee is working on the budget in detail before presenting it to the full board, but the required documents will not be available before the upcoming meeting.