Federal Judge Anna Reyes orders construction to be halted until the 26th
Strongly rebukes the surprise tree felling over the weekend, saying “the government deceived the court”
Trump’s ‘creation of a world-class golf course’ disrupted amid opposition from conservation groups
Trump administration heads to Washington A project to redevelop DC's historic public golf course into a world-class golf course has been put on hold by a court order.
On the 13th, Judge Anna Reyes of the Washington DC Federal Court ordered a complete halt to tree felling and construction at the East Potomac Golf Course until the 26th.
This decision came after a heated hearing that lasted about three hours held the previous day. Judge Reyes strongly criticized the administration for suddenly carrying out large-scale tree felling using the holiday period, saying, “The government deceived the court.”
Previously, the court issued an emergency construction suspension order for 24 hours on the 12th. At the time, the court requested the administration to attend a responsible person to explain why large-scale logging was enforced, and ordered that if any construction to change the permanent form or characteristics of the golf course is carried out in the future, the court and the plaintiff must be notified in writing at least 3 business days in advance.
This legal battle began after the National Park Service (NPS) submitted a related notice to the court just before work hours on the 9th, right before the holidays, and the trees in the golf course were removed over the weekend. It started with the surprise logging of about 400 trees. Authorities reportedly planned to cut down hundreds more trees. Accordingly, D.C. The DC Preservation League and two private residents filed an emergency injunction requesting a halt to construction.
The East Potomac Golf Course is part of President Donald Trump's D.C. project. It is one of the core projects of the downtown redevelopment plan. President Trump has expressed interest in renovating a public golf course in the city center since the end of 2025, and in June said on social media, “After completion, it will be transformed into a course that can host world-class major tournaments such as the U.S. Open, Ryder Cup, and PGA Championship.”
The Trump administration is currently building a $400 million White House ballroom and building a large Triumphal Arch in Washington, D.C. I am pursuing my large-scale development project simultaneously.
However, this development project has already caused friction, with several emergency hearings being held due to strong opposition from the plaintiff. Judge Reyes, who was on an overseas business trip last May, did not issue an order to stop construction based on the government's lawyer's explanation and trust, but the administration's surprise logging this weekend appears to have significantly damaged the relationship of trust between the court and the administration.
Following the court's suspension order, all related construction will be halted until the 26th, and depending on the outcome of the lawsuit on the merits, President Trump's D.C.It is expected that there will be some impact on the overall development plan.