Trump raises prospect of demolishing iconic Kennedy Center

The Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., may face demolition if legal challenges to President Donald Trump's renovation plans succeed, according to a recent filing by the Justice Department. Trump's administration argues that without his restoration efforts, the iconic performing arts landmark would deteriorate to the point of requiring demolition.

The filing states that the center is currently "structurally unsound, fundamentally unsafe, and embarrassing to the nation's capital." Trump's administration has secured $258 million from Congress for the restoration, which includes electrical, stage, and leak-prevention repairs. However, Trump has also pushed to have his name prominently added to the building, renaming it the "President Donald J. Trump Center" and surrounding site as the "President Donald J. Trump Plaza."

This has sparked a legal battle with former board member Congresswoman Joyce Beatty, who argues that only Congress can rename the institution. A federal judge previously ordered the removal of Trump's signage from the center. The administration is appealing the judge's decision.