While Trump eyes East Potomac could Langston, a pillar of African American history in D.C., be left behind?
WASHINGTON — Dave Ross learned the game at Langston Golf Course in Northeast and now shares his love of the sport with other Black children in the District.
“There’s a lot of history, a lot of history of Langston Golf Course, and it may not be pretty to a lot of folks to drive up there and see what they see, but we don’t wanna lose that,” Ross said.
RELATED: Trump administration terminates lease for DC’s public golf courses, threatening renovations and youth programs
Langston was built in the 1930s as a place for Black people to play golf when D.C.’s other public courses, East Potomac and Rock Creek, were segregated. It stands as the first public course built for Black golfers in the segregated District.
In 2020, D.C. nonprofit National Links Trust launched a privately funded mission to renovate all three community courses to make golf more accessible and affordable to people across the region.
That effort came to an abrupt end Tuesday when the Department of the Interior sent a termination letter canceling National Links Trust’s lease with the National Park Service.
“Are you worried about the future of your golf course?” WUSA9 asked Ross.
“I’m worried about the future of the golf course that we love so much,” he said.
An Interior Department official told WUSA9 the Trump administration took the action because National Links Trust wasn’t making the capital improvements required in its agreement, didn’t have a plan to address the problems, and failed to pay millions in rent owed under the lease.
National Links Trust Executive Director Damian Cosby disputes those allegations.
“Absolutely, we have” done things the right way and by the book, Cosby said. “We have always had a productive and cooperative working relationship with the National Park Service and have worked hand in hand on all aspects of our golf course operations and development projects.”
Cosby says the nonprofit is staying in place for now to keep operating the golf courses, but he doesn’t know how long that will last, throwing the future of hundreds of employees and youth programming into limbo.
The future of the courses themselves is also uncertain. Trump — who operates 16 high-end golf properties — regularly flies over East Potomac and has been dumping dirt from the White House East Wing demolition in the middle of the course for months.
But his plans for East Potomac, which sits in the shadows of the Washington Monument, remain a mystery. As are his plans for D.C.’s two other public courses, including Langston.
That leaves Ross questioning whether historic Langston’s long-overdue renovation remains on course — or whether Trump will focus his attention on the more prominent East Potomac.
“East Potomac has always been the golf course that’s gotten the most resources from the Interior Department and so forth. When they got new golf carts, they sent the old golf carts to Langston, you know, that kind of thing,” Ross said. “So yeah, Langston has always been the stepchild, if you would like to use that phrase. Yeah, I’m very concerned about the uncertainties of what may take place.”
In a statement, the Interior Department said only, “The Trump administration prides itself on getting the job done for the American people and partnering with others who share that same goal.”
The department did not provide information about Trump’s plans for D.C.’s public golf courses.
National Links Trust told WUSA9 it’s still determining its next steps, though it’s unclear if that includes legal action. Ross said he hopes to bring people from Langston Golf Course together to demand a seat at the table to determine what comes next.
