Former employees say Kennedy Center leadership stopped a funded roof remediation plan while later citing new hazards to justify an indefinite closure.
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The Kennedy Center’s abrupt decision to close the performing arts venue indefinitely this month has prompted fresh allegations that officials delayed planned roof repairs despite earlier knowledge of serious structural problems, according to a letter to Congress signed by a lawyer representing anonymous whistleblowers.
The letter says Kennedy Center leadership had long been aware of the building’s roofing issues but treated them as a lower priority, with executive director and chief operating officer Matt Floca allegedly halting a funded plan in April even though the money was already earmarked for repairs. The allegations centre on the roof overhang and related deterioration, which the whistleblowers argue should not have been presented as newly discovered hazards when the closure was announced.
In a September court declaration, Floca described “acute risks to public safety” after the aging building temporarily closed following an inspection of a deteriorating roof terrace canopy and a partial ceiling collapse. Floca’s statement indicates the closure was linked to the consequences of the inspection and the extent of the deterioration found at that time.
The whistleblowers’ lawyer, David Seide, disputed that framing, arguing that the need for remediation was recognized well before the later closure. In the letter, Seide said that more than one year earlier Floca had requested and received the needed funds to address what the letter calls “New Problems” referenced later, and that the work nevertheless did not proceed.
Seide’s letter points to federal legislation that earmarked $257 million for the Kennedy Center. It alleges that with those funds in hand, Floca “stopped the remediation process from moving forward” roughly six months before the closure, and that the later public justification relied on hazards that had already been known.
Kennedy Center leadership has rejected the allegations. In a written statement provided through Floca, the executive director said the institution had “known for years that the roof overhang leaked,” but that what changed in the summer was the extent of the internal damage that had spread. Floca said the safety of patrons, artists and staff is the priority.
Floca also addressed claims that the April decision halted repair plans. He said he did not stop the work as alleged, but instead reassigned it to a more comprehensive plan. He attributed the shift to procurement costs, saying a quote for initial plans came in at nearly three times the expected cost and that the change reflected a different approach to delivering the work rather than a determination that the work was unnecessary.
The allegations and denials come amid broader governance and legal disputes tied to the Kennedy Center’s high-profile role on the Potomac River waterfront and its status as a focal point in the Republican administration’s efforts to reshape elements of Washington, including the center’s leadership and branding. The text of the whistleblower letter situates the dispute in the context of the second term, with new leadership installed to the governing board and the president’s name placed on the building—an action a judge ordered removed after ruling new lettering was illegally added.
The board’s decision earlier this month to close the Kennedy Center indefinitely for repairs occurred after a U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper blocked plans to return the president’s name to the building. Cooper also directed the center to provide 30 days’ notice before making major physical changes, including demolition, as the president had threatened, while the Kennedy Center leadership is required to file a status report by Friday regarding the temporary closure and emergency repairs.
The letter’s claims were met with a direct response from Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, the top Democrat on the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works. Whitehouse wrote Floca after receiving the whistleblower letter, saying documents he reviewed suggest Kennedy Center leadership “hoarded” congressionally appropriated funding for repairs while attributing the condition of the facility to previous leadership.
Whitehouse said his initial investigation into alleged misconduct at the center focused on cronyism and corruption and included evidence of excessive spending under the president’s chairmanship of the board. He added that the documents he received now appear to show “deeper financial mismanagement.” A spokesperson for the committee’s Republican majority did not provide an immediate response to a request for comment.
For the Kennedy Center, the practical stakes are immediate: the institution faces an indefinite closure and emergency repair requirements, with oversight from Congress and the courts affecting what physical work can be done and on what timeline. The dispute over whether roof remediation was delayed—and whether “new” hazards were truly newly discovered—could influence how lawmakers evaluate accountability for safety and spending decisions tied to a federally funded $257 million repair effort.
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