Judge Reyes Warns Trump Over East Potomac Golf Course

The lawsuit over the East Potomac golf course is a federal challenge filed in February 2026 to stop the Trump administration from converting the century-old public course on Hains Point into a championship-style facility designed by Tom Fazio. A federal judge has declined to halt the project outright but has ordered the administration to notify the court before cutting more than 10 trees or bringing heavy machinery to the site, warning that acting first and asking forgiveness later would carry “serious consequences.”¹

Who Sued and What They’re Claiming

On February 13, 2026, the DC Preservation League and two local golfers, Alex Dickson and Dave Roberts, filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia against the Department of the Interior and the National Park Service. The case is DC Preservation League v. Department of the Interior, Case No. 1:26-cv-00477.² The plaintiffs are represented by Democracy Forward Foundation, Lowell & Associates (led by Abbe Lowell), and the Democracy Defenders Fund.³

The complaint invokes the National Environmental Policy Act, the National Historic Preservation Act, the National Park Service Organic Act, the Administrative Procedure Act, and an 1897 congressional act that designated East Potomac Park to be “forever held and used as a park for the recreation and pleasure of the people.”⁴ The core legal theory is that the administration bypassed federally required environmental reviews and historic preservation consultations before altering a site listed on the National Register of Historic Places.⁵

What the Administration Wants to Build

East Potomac Golf Links has operated as an affordable public course since 1920 and served roughly 130,000 rounds in 2025 across its 36 holes.⁶ Interior Secretary Doug Burgum unveiled the redesign on May 14, 2026: a single 18-hole championship course by Tom Fazio stretching to 7,660 yards, plus a nine-hole pitch-and-putt and a revamped driving range. Burgum compared the concept to Bethpage Black and Torrey Pines and said the site would offer “championship-quality golf at affordable, highly discounted rates.”⁷

Fazio, who has designed multiple courses for the Trump Organization, described the site as having “Pebble Beach quality land” and said he initially turned down the project before changing his mind after visiting the property.⁸ The reduction from 36 holes to 18 would sharply cut capacity for recreational golfers, and critics have questioned the 7,660-yard length for a site too small to host a major championship’s hospitality infrastructure.⁹

Court filings also disclosed an 11-page fundraising document titled the “National Garden of American Heroes Foundation: Pledge Agreement” seeking binding donor commitments for the “comprehensive redevelopment” of the park. Meredith O’Rourke, who ran the Trump campaign’s 2024 fundraising, was listed as the contact for donors.¹⁰ Reporting by Notus indicated a $75 million fundraising goal for East Potomac alone and $150 million across three D.C. courses. The National Park Foundation said it was never formally asked to participate and plays no role in the project.¹¹

The Demolition Debris and Contamination

A central factual driver of the suit is the administration’s decision in October 2025 to dump roughly 30,000 cubic yards of debris from the White House East Wing demolition onto the East Potomac course. Plaintiffs allege the material was moved without any environmental review and was “apparently untested for pollutants or contaminants” at the time of dumping.¹²

Soil testing data released by the National Park Service in late April 2026, compiled by Jacobs Engineering Group, confirmed lead, chromium, arsenic, volatile organic compounds, and pesticides at levels “above background levels.” Arsenic and lead were flagged at “levels that could pose a risk to human health.”¹³ Asbestos was not detected in the samples tested, though two samples were “inadvertently not tested” and a third was damaged in shipment.¹⁴

An Interior Department spokesperson said the soil “passed all standards set by law.” Robert Glicksman, an environmental law professor at George Washington University, told reporters that some concentrations exceeded standards used by states with stricter rules, such as California.¹⁴ No environmental remediation has been ordered as of the most recent reporting.

Where the Case Stands

The plaintiffs filed a motion for a preliminary injunction or stay on February 23, 2026.¹⁵ In an April 30 filing, the government said “no formal decision has been made regarding the nature and scope of any renovations” and assured the court there would be “no major changes” before judicial review.¹⁶ Days later, on May 2, reports surfaced that construction and tree-clearing could begin the following Monday, and the plaintiffs filed an emergency motion for a temporary restraining order.¹⁷

U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes held a remote hearing on May 4, 2026. Kevin Griess, Superintendent of the National Mall and Memorial Parks, told the court no construction was planned to begin that day, though a safety assessment was underway.¹⁸ Reyes declined to issue a temporary restraining order, calling it “too early” for emergency relief and saying she did not want to “play the role of the ‘Parks and Rec’ department.”¹⁹

She did impose conditions. The Park Service must notify the court before cutting more than 10 trees or bringing heavy machinery to the site, and Reyes signaled she would demand detailed information about long-term plans if either trigger were tripped.²⁰ She warned that closure or major renovations without proper notice would carry “serious consequences,” adding: “I would have a particular concern that we not act first and ask forgiveness later. Because that’s not going to be acceptable.”¹ Reyes also indicated she wanted to know whether the White House has an active role in the fundraising tied to the project.¹⁹

On May 3, the plaintiffs filed a motion incorporating the pledge agreement and the new contamination data, arguing the government’s characterization of the project as “conceptual” was a “ruse” and that the case was “indisputably ripe” for review.¹⁰ By early June, Reyes reiterated that routine maintenance could continue but cautioned the Interior Department that “closing one course isn’t maintenance.”²¹

East Potomac Golf Links remains open. No construction start date has been set and no formal injunction is in place, though the court’s notice requirements function as a practical restraint on major work. Fazio has said he hoped to begin later in the summer of 2026.⁸

Why the Site Is Contested Beyond Golf

The entire park was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973, which is what triggers the historic preservation consultation obligations at the center of the suit.²² The course also carries civil rights significance. It was segregated until 1941, when Black golfers Asa Williams, George Williams, and Cecil R. Shamwell of the Royal Golf Club demanded the right to play and completed a round under police protection despite harassment. The next day, Interior Secretary Harold Ickes ordered the course opened to all, an event recognized as a turning point in the desegregation of National Park Service facilities.⁶ The DC Preservation League has framed its lawsuit as a fight to prevent a “public treasure” from becoming “a private playground for the wealthy.”²

1
Washington Examiner. DC Judge Warns of Serious Consequences if East Potomac Golf Links Closes Without Proper Notice
2
Archpaper. DC Preservation League Sues Trump Over East Potomac Park Golf
3
DC Preservation League. East Potomac Links Lawsuit
4
Democracy Forward. DC Preservation League v. Department of Interior, Memorandum in Support of Motion for Stay
5
Civil Rights Litigation Clearinghouse. League v. Department of Interior
6
The Cultural Landscape Foundation. Washington DC’s Historic East Potomac Park in the Crosshairs
7
WTOP. Design Plans for East Potomac Golf Links Renovation Shared by Trump Administration
8
Golf.com. Plan for President Trump DC Muni by Fazio
9
The Fried Egg. Washington DC Golf East Potomac Tom Fazio Plans
10
Democracy Forward. Memorandum in Support of Emergency Status Conference
11
Notus. Trump Golf Course Takeover Potomac Rock Creek
12
Democracy Defenders Fund. Press Release – East Potomac Lawsuit Filed
13
E&E News. White House Demolition Sent Contaminated Dirt to Golf Course
14
DC News Now. Environmental Concerns Raised After East Wing Debris Tests Positive for Toxins
15
CourtListener. League v. Department of Interior, Docket
16
Democracy Forward. Emergency Stay Sought in Legal Battle Over Public Access to East Potomac Golf Course
17
WJLA. East Potomac Park Golf Course Federal Lawsuit
18
San Francisco Chronicle. Judge in Dispute Over Washington Golf Course
19
Washington Times. Ana Reyes Federal Judge Lets Maintenance Proceed East Potomac Golf
20
News4Jax. Judge in Dispute Over Washington Golf Course Tells Trump Officials Not to Cut Trees Without Notice
21
WTOP. Future of East Potomac Golf Course in Question After Lease Termination
22
University of Pennsylvania. East Potomac Park Golf Course Cultural Landscapes Inventory