WASHINGTON — The Department of the Interior is preparing a plan to shut down East Potomac Golf Links by Nov. 15 to begin renovations, federal lawyers told a federal court on Wednesday night, aligning official government policy with public declarations from President Donald Trump.
In a court filing submitted in U.S. District Court in Washington, Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward acknowledged that Trump twice instructed agencies to close the public course in the nation’s capital. Woodward wrote that the agency is working on a plan to carry out the president’s directive and will notify the court, CBS News reported.
According to court documents reported by ABC News, the National Park Service intends to submit a design by golf course architect Tom Fazio to the National Capital Planning Commission on Friday. The plan envisions an overhaul of the municipal site into a championship-grade facility capable of hosting top-tier tournaments such as the U.S. Open. The commission is scheduled to evaluate the proposal during its meeting on Dec. 3.
Clash Over Course Overhaul
The filing marks a notable shift in an ongoing legal battle initiated by the D.C. Preservation League and two local golfers. The plaintiffs sued earlier this year to halt any redevelopment of the public golf facility, which first opened in 1920 on a man-made peninsula in the Potomac River. Opponents argue that a massive transformation would eliminate affordable recreation for city residents and irreparably damage the surrounding public parkland.
Federal attorneys and agency witnesses had previously told the court there was no finalized blueprint to redevelop or shutter the park, characterizing the initiative merely as a possible concept. That stance sparked fierce scrutiny from U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes, who has presided over the case.
On Monday, Reyes issued a preliminary injunction barring the federal government from cutting down or damaging any additional trees across East Potomac Park while the lawsuit proceeds. The judge acted after government workers felled hundreds of trees over a single weekend with minimal notice. News outlets reported varying counts, with CBS News reporting more than 500 trees were removed and NPR reporting 430 trees cleared.
Reyes also ordered the administration to provide at least 10 business days of advance written notice before initiating any irreversible alterations or closures. In a sharply critical 70-page opinion, Reyes pointed out the contradiction between Trump’s social media statements announcing immediate construction and the sworn testimony of federal officials denying any concrete plan existed, according to NPR.
Administration Moves Forward
Trump responded forcefully to the legal pushback on his Truth Social platform, writing late Wednesday that the current course is dilapidated and dangerous, ABC News reported. The president maintained that local players would ultimately welcome the modern redesign and argued that a judge should not impede the project.
The Justice Department has appealed the preliminary injunction. Under an updated lease arrangement disclosed in Wednesday’s filing, the National Links Trust will stop operating East Potomac by the close of business on or before Nov. 15, while continuing to run two other public golf courses in the District, ABC News reported.
Reyes ordered Woodward and an Interior Department attorney to attend a status conference on Friday morning to address the latest developments and reconcile the government’s previous court statements with the planned closure.
