WASHINGTON — U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes on Saturday ordered a two-week delay for renovation work at East Potomac Golf Links, a historic public course in Washington, just before the course was set to close Sunday for a 15-month redevelopment project.
President Donald Trump immediately announced his administration would appeal the ruling on an expedited basis, calling it a "highly destructive and political decision."
Trump has championed the renovation as necessary. He criticized the course's current condition, calling it in a "terrible state of disrepair" and noting it is widely known as "Trash Island."
The legal challenge began in February when the DC Preservation League and two local golfers filed suit, arguing the plan would remake an accessible public course into an unaffordable one. The plaintiffs sought the stop-work order, contending that closure and renovation would "irreparably injure plaintiffs and the public interest."
Trump has denied those claims.
Judge Reyes cited Trump's own social media posts from last month in her decision. Those posts outlined the closure date for East Potomac Park and directly linked it to the golf course renovation, she wrote. The posts indicated the redevelopment plan was final and that the National Park Service "will close the Park to implement it," favoring the plaintiffs' motion, the judge ruled.
The temporary restraining order remains in effect through Nov. 28.
The golf course project is one of several initiatives Trump has championed to remake parts of Washington. Others include a large memorial arch, renovations to a White House ballroom, and work on the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.
A separate federal judge recently ordered a 14-day delay on construction for the memorial arch, shortly after a planning commission composed of Trump appointees had approved it.
