D.C.’s Federal Golf Course Is Latest Landmark Set for Trump Makeover Even as Opponents File Suit Seeking Stop to Renovations

Tuesday’s supposed start date for Interior Department renovations of the latest Washington, D.C., landmark is still on the books even as opponents are hoping a lawsuit will prevent the presidential makeover from proceeding as planned. Redevelopment of the East Potomac Park Golf Links on the southwest side of Washington, D.C., has been on the agenda since May. President Trump initiated the plans with an eye to making it a destination course for the PGA or other tournaments. “When completed, this Course will have the ability to host Major Golf Tournaments, including The U.S. Open, The Ryder Cup, The PGA Championship, and other top PGA Tour events,” Mr. Trump posted on Truth Social in June after he toured the course with Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and the famed golf course designer, Tom Fazio. He marked September 1 as the start date for renovation.Bicyclists rallied at the park’s southside Hains Point monument on Saturday to protest the changes that they say could limit their access. An opposition group called Save East Po also protested the Interior Department’s supposed felling of dozens of trees last week, including an historic cherry tree on the 14th hole of the Blue Course that had been gifted by Japan in 1912. On Friday, preservationists led by the D.C. Preservation League filed a lawsuit demanding that any impending work stop before it starts. It argued that the administration failed to comply with an oral order in May by a district court judge, Ana C. Reyes, who declined to stop maintenance but who reportedly told the government it must notify the court before cutting down more than 10 trees or bringing large earth-moving or other equipment onto the property. The Save East Po group claimed Sunday that National Park Service rangers have been forced to sign nondisclosure agreements about the renovations. It is asking rangers to blow the whistle on any unsanctioned actions.“Just a PSA: the ‘good guys’ don’t hide behind NDAs and secrecy regarding public projects,” the group posted on X. “If any rangers have information to share, send it to us via Signal. We will keep your identity secret.”Other opponents, including Representatives Don Beyer of Virginia, Glenn Ivey and Jamie Raskin of Maryland, Eleanor Holmes Norton of Washington, D.C., and dozens of other Democrats are on record strongly objecting to the impending renovations. They say the administration has not addressed affordability of the course after renovations, has not provided architectural plans that demonstrate historical or environmental considerations or processes, and has not demonstrated whether the newly designed course would result in the loss of biking and walking paths on federally owned land. In early August, the lawmakers wrote the administration demanding it answer several questions about the renovation plans, noting that “while the courses are certainly in need of significant maintenance and repair following decades of underinvestment, this work must be accomplished in compliance with the law and with respect for the historic nature of this beloved public resource.”The letter also asked how the renovation would be funded, noting that renovation costs were said to be covered by the “shadowy” National Garden of American Heroes Foundation tied to Mr. Trump’s 2024 election campaign. The group, led by one of the president’s top fundraisers, Meredith O’Rourke, has been tasked to lead fundraising for the president’s beautification efforts around the city, including the White House ballroom and his National Garden of American Heroes, which he signed into being with an executive order during both of his terms in office. Under the purview of the National Endowment for the Humanities, the sculpture garden — to be located in West Potomac Park — is also locked up in a lawsuit by the same group of litigants as the golf course, which contends the president must have congressional approval to make any changes to the city’s federal landscape.“Some of us are fighting back against Trump on this,” Mr. Beyer posted Sunday of what he described as the president’s latest “vanity project.” The lawmakers sought an August 14 deadline for a response from the administration but has not stated whether one had arrived. Caught in the middle of the dispute is the Interior Department’s tree removal contractor, Ross Tree Expert Company. It issued a statement on its website over the weekend after being targeted by preservationists, saying it performed routine maintenance on hazardous trees and did not cut down any historic trees at the course. The Interior Department has not announced a plan for construction to begin even as the September 1 groundbreaking is just days away. In just the last four days, dozens of posts on the president’s Truth Social account have commented on or shared images about restoration efforts across the city, including at the Reflecting Pool, the Thomas Jefferson Memorial, the White House, Meridian Park, and elsewhere. According to the president, the Interior Department has cleaned or fixed up 83 statues, monuments, and memorials around the city as well as removed graffiti and tons of debris, replaced thousands of broken benches and lights, and made 250+ pothole repairs. If the East Potomac Park golf course is renovated to PGA standards, a PGA championship tournament is unlikely to be held for more than a decade. The tour schedule is already set through 2042. On Saturday, the president noted that he has happily accepted the PGA Commissioner Brian Rolapp’s request that he serve as honorary chairman of the upcoming Presidents Cup at Chicago’s Medinah Country Club.

D.C.’s Federal Golf Course Is Latest Landmark Set for Trump Makeover Even as Opponents File Suit Seeking Stop to Renovations

D.C.’s Federal Golf Course Is Latest Landmark Set for Trump Makeover Even as Opponents File Suit Seeking Stop to Renovations

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