Park service could remove more than 500 trees at historic golf course Trump wants to redesign

WASHINGTON (AP) — The National Park Service has begun a new round of tree-cutting at a historic golf course near 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 part of the rehabilitation project, the National Park Service said in a court filing Friday. “No healthy trees that are contributing features of the historical golf course” — including historic cherry trees — will be removed as part of the project, the park service said.

A total of 169 trees will be removed starting Saturday, with another 90 trees slated for removal later, the agency said.

The tree removals come as President Donald Trump has moved to turn the course into a world-class golf venue — part of his grand vision for Washington, D.C., where he has torn down storied structures, remade or renamed others and deployed the National Guard for more than a year.

Some residents fear the planned changes to the golf course — where Trump has visited with a cabinet member, a well-known golf course architect and blueprints — risk altering the character of a place that has served Washingtonians of all income levels for more than a century. Turning the park into an upscale golf course will mean costlier fees and a likely 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 “recognizes the importance of trees to the park and its visitors. This carefully planned work is part 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 concerns that work was expected to begin immediately on the course.

Charles Birnbaum, president of the Cultural Landscape Foundation, a nonprofit that is suing the Trump administration over renovations at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, said the tree removal at the golf course should be subject to review under the National Historic Preservation Act.

“The work is not routine maintenance, and therefore, for a designated property, they need to undertake Section 106,” Birnbaum said Saturday, referring to the section of the preservation law that requires federal agencies to consider a project’s effects on historic and cultural properties.

Trump, an avid golfer, has posted about the course on social media: “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,” he wrote in late June.

It’s unclear when the course could host any major tournaments, as locations are chosen several years ahead of the events.