By Sunlen Serfaty, CNN
(CNN) — President Donald Trump’s newly appointed head of the Kennedy Center offered a full-throated defense of the decision to close the renowned arts institution for renovations for two years, telling reporters on Wednesday that it was his idea.
“The president asked: ‘how do you make these projects the best, how do you make them, you know really excellent and deliver them efficiently?’,” Matt Floca said after leading press on a tour through the bowels of the building. The walkthrough was to highlight damage and upgrades he says are necessary to keeping the nation’s premiere arts and cultural center in good order.
“My recommendation was you close the building and you do everything over a definite period of time, two year,” Floca said.
However, Kennedy Center officials acknowledged that even after the two years, patrons may not see much of a difference in the physical look of the building when it reopens.
The only visible changes of note that patrons will see are landscape pavers, fountains and possible changes to the interior color palette, officials said, describing the approach as one meant to elevate the look and feel of the building, while keeping the main layout unchanged.
The renovations themselves are not, as Trump has previously said, so dramatic as to be leaving the building’s steel “fully exposed.”
During construction, scaffolds will be visible, but “you’re not going to be able to stand in Georgetown and look over the river and see through the building. That’s not what’s going to happen,” one Kennedy Center official said.
The disclosures come as controversy has swirled around the future of the Kennedy Center during Trump’s second administration.
The arts institution is one of many parts of Washington, DC, the president has sought to put his stamp upon, with his handpicked board of trustees voting to rename it the “Trump Kennedy Center” and promising to revamp its look, programming and place in the United States’ cultural landscape.
Over the last year, the changes have prompted high-profile withdrawals from artists, declining ticket sales and lawsuits.
Touring the building
In February, Trump announced that the center would close for two years beginning in July to undergo an expansive renovation.
But while officials acknowledged that sales are down across the performing arts – and the Kennedy Center is no different – they insisted that the decision to close “is completely founded in the needs of this building and not the mission or not the programming or not being able to achieve that mission.”
Kennedy Center officials are conducting tours with various groups, including donors and members of Congress, showing the boiler room, behind the stages, through the parking garages, and to see the HVAC system, to provide evidence of the need for the renovations.
Officials showed conditions of a building with evidence of water intrusion at many places – at parking deck ceilings and floors, steel beams that had been corroded and rusted over, discolored pavers, and fireproofing that was falling apart.
An expansive “river pump room” – where the center gets it’s cooling capacity from, with a big pipe dipping into and draining water from the Potomac River – had equipment that was first installed in 1971 and has not been functioning for 30 years.
The room and method for getting water are among the things that need to be completely overhauled, officials said. There are discussions underway to stop using the Potomac River as a cooling source, and potentially use sewage water – a somewhat more natural system.
Many of the aesthetic decisions have yet to be made such as any changes to the design and the color of the carpets in the Hall of States.
At this time there are no plans to change anything related to former President John F. Kennedy in the building, including the iconic statue and bust, officials said, adding that they know of no planned changes to the presidential box, either.
The Reach, an extension adjacent to the Kennedy Center, will remain partially opened during the planned closure.
But during the closure staffing will be bare bones, Kennedy Center officials acknowledged. Only a small staff will remain to work on the plans, development, finance, and programming. The Kennedy Center has already seen multiple rounds of layoffs since Trump took office last year.
Officials acknowledged this is an area Trump has taken a keen personal interest in. “He is in the details. I don’t know if there’s any way that other put that,” one official said.
The project is expected to cost $257 million. Federal funding will go to the renovations and maintenance, while private donors are being asked to help fund additional projects like the lounge upgrades and patron experience.
The man for the job
Floca, who was previously the arts center’s vice president of facilities operations, was only named as head of the institution in March, after Trump replaced his predecessor, Ric Grenell, amid a deluge of negative headlines about the Kennedy Center.
Insiders previously told CNN that Floca and Trump had developed a close relationship over their shared interest in construction, and that the young facilities manager had impressed the president with his knowledge of the building’s needs during a tour of the Kennedy Center several months ago.
Floca said that he intends to stay for the duration of the project and show his worth.
“I want to prove that I can do this job better than anyone in the country,” he said.
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