Trump administration strikes deal on D.C. golf courses, but questions loom at East Potomac  

President Trump’s administration struck a deal late Friday with the National Links Trust (NLT), the local nonprofit that operates Washington D.C.’s public golf courses, clearing the path for an overhaul of East Potomac Golf Links, a site the president has for months had his eye on for redevelopment.   

The move came as a surprise to district golfers and staff at East Potomac, who had been unsettled in recent weeks by reports the administration was preparing to launch deferred maintenance and tree-clearing work at the location imminently.  

The National Parks Service, which owns the land the course sits on, late last year terminated the Links Trust’s lease at East Potomac and two other district courses: Langston Golf Course and Rock Creek Park Golf Course.  

Trump, who owns dozens of golf resorts and properties around the world, has mused about transforming the Hains Point location, which is home to three courses, walking trails, and scenic views of the Potomac River and Washington Monument, into a championship-style, 18-hole facility capable of luring major professional tournaments and the Ryder Cup. 

Under the fresh agreement, the Department of the Interior granted the Links Trust a new long-term lease at Langston and Rock Creek Park Golf, while NLT will also continue operating East Potomac Golf Links “until the National Park Service is ready to commence a historic restoration there.”  

In a statement, the NLT said it was “encouraged” that the Parks Service had promised it would “follow the established compliance process that we went through at Rock Creek Park Golf for any large-scale work at East Potomac.”  

“With this agreement, East Potomac will continue to be accessible and affordable for those who use the course and facilities,” the nonprofit said. “We thank President Trump for reaching an agreement that keeps Washington, DC’s three public golf courses open, welcoming and affordable community gathering places for DC residents and all golfers.”  

Friday’s news was a dramatic departure from a monthlong span of tensions between the Trump administration, NLT and critics of the president’s attempted takeover, a fight that landed in court earlier this year.  

The DC Preservation League and two district residents sued over the president’s plans in February and asked a judge last week to grant an emergency stay blocking the work. 

The news outlet NOTUS reported over the weekend that the legal case involving the government’s plans for East Potomac is expected to continue despite Friday’s deal.  

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