A federal judge in Washington, D.C., told the Trump administration that closing East Potomac Golf Links for renovations must be a “final agency action” in a court hearing on Monday morning.
The hearing comes as the Department of the Interior and National Park Service planned to begin deferred maintenance and repairs of the golf course on Monday. Former President Joe Biden-appointed judge Ana C. Reyes of the District Court for the District of Columbia urged the Trump administration to be fully transparent about its plans to renovate the course and give the court notice before making any major changes.
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“Given some issues around the District recently, I would have a particular concern that we not act first and ask forgiveness later,” Reyes said during the Monday morning hearing. “Because that’s not going to be acceptable, and I want you to make sure that that’s fully communicated to the agency. If anything like that happens, there are going to be serious consequences.”
The DC Preservation League, which is also part of a lawsuit over the renovations at the Kennedy Center, filed an emergency motion to stay any alterations or the closure of the golf course, after reports this weekend that the temporary closure for renovations could begin this week. This morning’s hearing is the latest development in the various court battles over the Trump administration’s planned construction projects across D.C.
Reyes told the courtroom that if the Trump administration plans to cut down more than 10 trees on the golf course, it would need court approval to do so. When Reyes asked the Trump administration lawyers if they planned on closing the golf course anytime soon, the Department of Justice lawyers responded: “No closure notice has been issued… but it’s still under consideration at this point.”
Reyes became concerned about “surprises” from the Trump administration regarding closures or construction on the course, according to MeidasTouch, after she received a note with images of signs on the golf course warning of closures. But, Superintendent of National Mall and Memorial Parks Kevin Greiss reassured the judge that the golf course is “business as usual.”
In a court filing on Monday morning before the hearing, the Department of Justice’s Adam R. F. Gustafson said that the National Park Service is “still evaluating the scope of repairs and deferred maintenance issues, including critical safety issues, that the National Links Trust allowed to proliferate.” The Department of the Interior terminated the National Links Trust’s 50-year lease on the course in late 2025.
“Initial work will include basic housekeeping and repairs that do not require any environmental compliance documentation like fence cleaning and debris cleanup activities,” the DOJ’s court filing read. The filing also insisted that “no deferred maintenance would be undertaken without completing the appropriate environmental compliance.”
The DOJ listed that an initial look at what areas of the course may need repairs included “the parking lot, retaining wall, signage, exterior of the Club House, interior of the Club House, flower beds, light poles, cart paths, maintenance compound, Driving Range Building, Driving Range, Golf Course Barn, Starter Building, and trees in the parking lot.”
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION TO CLOSE POTOMAC GOLF COURSE FOR CHAMPIONSHIP-LEVEL RENOVATIONS
The plaintiffs appeared skeptical of the Trump administration’s assertions in court, with their lawyers saying they take the DOJ lawyers’ words with a “grain of salt.”
The Washington Examiner has reached out to the Interior Department for comment.
