WASHINGTON (AP) — The National Park Service has begun a new spherical of tree-cutting at a historic golf course close to the National Mall as the Trump administration proceeds with a plan to renovate the East Potomac Golf Links into a championship-level course.
More than 500 trees “that do not contribute to the historic landscape will be removed” as half of the rehabilitation project, the National Park Service said in a court submitting Friday. “No healthy trees that are contributing features of the historical golf course” — including historic cherry trees — will be eliminated as half of the project, the park service said.
A complete of 169 trees will be eliminated beginning Saturday, with another 90 trees slated for elimination later, the company said.
The tree removals come as President Donald Trump has moved to flip the course into a world-class golf venue — half of his grand imaginative and prescient for Washington, D.C., where he has torn down storied buildings, remade or renamed others and deployed the National Guard for more than a 12 months.
Some residents concern the deliberate adjustments to the golf course — where Trump has visited with a cupboard member, a well-known golf course architect and blueprints — risk altering the character of a place that has served Washingtonians of all income ranges for more than a century. Turning the park into an upscale golf course will imply costlier charges and a probably loss of public space.
“The National Park Service is finally implementing a 7-year-old plan to address tree overgrowth at East Potomac Golf Course,” the Interior Department said in a statement Saturday. The department oversees the park service and other agencies that manage federal lands.
The renovation work will include selective tree and vegetation work to restore the course, the Interior Department said, adding that the work is intended to “help restore the course’s historic character and reopen views toward landmarks, including the Washington Monument, National War College, Potomac River and Washington Channel.”
The park service “acknowledges the significance of trees to the park and its guests. This rigorously deliberate work is half of our required stewardship of the park,” the statement said.
The golf course will remain open to the public throughout the renovation effort, although individual holes may temporarily close while work is underway, the agency said.
The 106-year-old public course has been embroiled in a lawsuit since February. Plaintiffs including the DC Preservation League say the Trump administration’s reconstruction would violate the congressional act that created the park in 1897. The group sought an emergency stop-work order this spring because of considerations that work was expected to start immediately on the course.
Trump, an avid golfer, has posted about the course on social media, “When accomplished, this Course will have the capacity to host Major Golf Tournaments, including The U.S. Open, The Ryder Cup, The PGA Championship, and other prime PGA Tour occasions,” he wrote in late June.
It’s unclear when the course could host any main tournaments, as places are chosen several years forward of the occasions.
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