 In August 2015, Lithuania's Chief Rabbi Chaim Burshtein was dismissed by the Lithuanian Jews after he made a public statement opposing the conversion of the arena into a convention center.In 2016–2017, a petition opposing the convention center received 38,000 signatures, many from descendants of Lithuanian Jews now living in other countries.News plans for transforming the Palace of Concerts and Sports into a modern convention center were announced in December 2019.