A federal judge agreed Monday to extend an order blocking the Trump administration’s renovation plans for a century-old public golf course in the nation’s capital.
U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes issued a preliminary injunction that halts tree-cutting and other work at the East Potomac Golf Course.
On Oct. 18, President Donald Trump announced plans on social media to close the golf course for 15 months, starting Nov. 15, and redevelop the 106-year-old park and course despite a court challenge by the D.C. Preservation League and two golfers. A day later, Trump posted that the work would start immediately.
Reyes, who was nominated to the bench by Democratic President Joe Biden, previously ordered the administration to suspend work on the project until at least Oct. 26.
The plaintiffs challenging the project claim the work is inflicting irreversible damage. At a hearing, the judge excoriated the government after workers cut down at least 400 trees over a holiday weekend with little notice to the plaintiffs.
The course renovation project is part of the Republican president’s aggressive campaign to leave his personal imprint on Washington’s historic landscape, including his plans to construct a huge ballroom at the White House, to build a massive arch and to add his own name to the Kennedy Center.
Reyes rejected the administration’s request for her to recuse herself from the case. The government questioned her impartiality and accused her of engaging in “egregious” behavior from the bench during an emergency hearing in the case.
