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Over 60 trees were removed at East Potomac Golf Links before official approval for renovations was granted, The Washington Post reported Friday, Aug. 28
Preservationists argue the plans violate a law protecting the park for public recreation and are challenging the project in court
Proposed renovations include expanding the golf course by 50 acres, impacting historic cherry trees and popular park amenities
The Trump administration cut down dozens of trees on a beloved Washington, D.C. golf course before they were officially given permission to begin renovating the golf course, according to a new report.
Trees across East Potomac Golf Links have been coming down for weeks, after President Donald Trump said in June that work on the historical public golf facility would begin Sept. 1, The Washington Post reported on Friday, Aug. 28.
As of Thursday, Aug. 27, the administration had yet to release any design plans, construction schedule or budget for the golf course, and officials haven’t said whether the park would be closing for any renovations, according to the Post.
The outlet reported that more than 60 trees across the park — home to many historic cherry trees and sycamores — had been cut down over the past several weeks, citing an informal count.
A view of a cherry tree in West Potomac Park.
Credit: Raymond Boyd/Getty
Although tree removal is common in major golf course renovations, as designers aim to give golfers better visibility and larger playing corridors, the Interior Department told the Post that the chopped-down trees in East Potomac Park were part of routine maintenance and were not connected to the Trump administration’s proposed renovations.
“Arborists are doing routine maintenance at East Potomac Park with selective removal of hazard trees, non-native invasive trees, and declining and dying trees that cannot be brought back to good health through any degree of intervention,” an Interior Department spokesperson said in a statement to PEOPLE.
“Trees throughout the park are regularly monitored for potential safety impacts to visitors, and when a tree is determined to be dying, declining, or hazardous our arborists may make the decision to remove it,” the spokesperson added.
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Preservationists are in the process of challenging the Trump administration’s redevelopment of the East Potomac Golf Links in the U.S. District Court, arguing that the plans violate an 1897 congressional act establishing East Potomac Park for the “recreation and pleasure of the people,” according to the Post.
U.S. District Judge Ana C. Reyes declined to stop the government from performing necessary maintenance back in May, but told administration lawyers that she wanted advance notice before the government removed more than 10 trees or brought major equipment onto park property, the outlet reported, citing a hearing in May on the lawsuit.
Reyes’ direction was delivered orally and was not included in a formal written order, and an anonymous source told the Post that the government has not notified the plaintiffs or the court about the recent tree work.
Additionally, a joint court filing posted by the Justice Department on Friday stated that “no final agency action has occurred” in the construction process, and that “multiple public-facing steps” would happen before any redesign took place.
Attorneys for the preservationists pushed back against these comments, the Post reported, citing a government attorney who previously told the court that the Interior and the Park Service were “trying to meet” a September construction date.
Meetings about the proposed renovations have also been postponed more than once, per the outlet.
Trump is seen after making a visit to East Potomac Golf Links in Washington, D.C., on June 28, 2026.
Credit: Kent NISHIMURA / AFP via Getty
Trump initially shared his plans for the East Potomac Golf Links, which sits on federal land run by the National Park Service, on Truth Social on June 28. He planned to “build one of the Greatest Golf Courses anywhere in the World,” which would “host major golf tournaments,” he wrote at the time.
The president was spotted touring the course that same day, carrying plans for the redesigned golf course, which appeared to exclude Washington’s oldest grove of cherry trees and other popular recreation areas, the Post reported on June 30.
The trees, gifted from Japan, arrived in Washington in January 1910 and were planted in a remote section of what is now East Potomac Park. It was speculated that the trees were planted in that area due to the shipment having been heavily infested with insects and diseases, according to the National Park Service.
A photo of the architectural plans obtained by the Post and The New York Times appeared to show the East Potomac Golf Links covering the entirety of East Potomac Park and cutting into the historic grove of cherry trees. Other existing park amenities that appeared to be missing from the updated plans that were photographed include the riverside bicycle trail and miniature golf course in the area, according to the Post.
Overall, the new plans show the East Potomac Golf Links being expanded about 50 acres into parkland that is currently being used for picnicking, fishing, cycling and other recreational activities, the newspaper reported on June 30.
The golf course would be transformed from its original layout of three courses with 36 holes to a single 18-hole championship course, per the outlet.
Read the original article on People