Washington DC - A US federal judge ruled Tuesday that President Donald Trump's name cannot be added back onto the Kennedy Center's exterior, rebuking the storied cultural institution's new board for trying to circumvent an earlier order.

The ruling comes just as the board – which Trump has stacked with allies – is set to meet to consider an emergency shutdown of the center for renovations, citing fiscal and safety concerns.

"Simply put," wrote judge Christopher Cooper in his decision, the board "cannot install memorials for President Trump or anyone or anything else at the Kennedy Center without Congress's blessing."

Cooper previously ordered Trump's name removed from the exterior of the Kennedy Center and overturned the board's decision last year to rename the institution the "Trump-Kennedy Center."

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Workers removed Trump's name from the building in June, but scaffolding and tarps have remained ever since.

Last month, the board moved forward with a plan to add new signage on the building that would read "renovated and restored by President Donald J. Trump."

Cooper on Tuesday said that the plan was in violation of his previous ruling.

The board, meanwhile, was set to meet Tuesday and vote on a potential years-long shutdown of the center for major renovations sought by Trump.