A judge ruled Friday that he will continue to block the Des Moines Art Center from removing a 28-year-old art installation in the city of Des Moines’ Greenwood Park but acknowledged that his order will satisfy neither party.

“Greenwood Pond: Double Site” and its future have been in limbo since late 2023, when the art center decided that the work, which includes paths and structures in and around a pond, had deteriorated to the point that it was a public safety risk and that repairs would cost too much. The artist, Mary Miss of New York, sued after the art center rejected her plea to save “Double Site.”

On April 8, U.S. District Judge Stephen Locher temporarily blocked removal of the artwork while he considered each side’s arguments. He ruled on May 3 that the contract between Miss and the art center prevents demolition without her consent – but also wrote that the same contract gives the art center discretion to decline repairs. “The end result is therefore an unsatisfying status quo: the artwork will remain standing (for now) despite being in a condition that no one likes but that the Court cannot order anyone to change,” Locher wrote.

The ruling says demolition could proceed if the city of Des Moines ordered it because “Double Site” was a nuisance or safety hazard. “For whatever reason, however, the City has not exercised this authority in connection with the Site,” Locher wrote. “Instead, the City’s position appears to be that it delegated such authority to the Art Center. This … does not mean the Art Center can ignore its obligations to Miss.”

Locher rejected Miss’ arguments that the art center exaggerated potential repair costs or neglected required maintenance over the years. And he said neither the contract nor a federal law protecting visual art gives Miss a right to determine the work’s future beyond resisting its demolition.

On Friday, the art center released the following statement: “In today’s order, the court held that the Des Moines Art Center cannot remove ‘Greenwood Pond: Double Site,’ even the major areas that were declared unsalvageable and hazardous last fall, without the permission of Mary Miss. The court also found that the Des Moines Art Center is not obligated to rebuild or renovate the work. We are exploring our options as to how to resolve what has become a court-ordered stalemate. In the meantime, we will retain the existing fencing around the dangerous sections of the site and will engage the city of Des Moines to address public safety in Greenwood Park.”