WASHINGTON (AP) — A pack of cyclists whisked by along the circuit at East Potomac Park while the golf course parking lot filled with luxury SUVs parked next to older, inexpensive economy cars, all with the Washington Monument in the background.
The scene highlighted what residents say are the park’s best features: its accessibility and affordability right in the nation’s capital.
The historic park, especially the golf course, has caught the eye of President Donald Trump, who wants to turn it into a world-class golf venue. It’s part of his grand vision for Washington, D.C., where he has torn down storied structures, remade or renamed others and deployed the National Guard for more than a year.
But some residents fear the planned changes to the golf course — where Trump has visited with a cabinet member, a well-known golf course architect and blueprints — risk altering the character of a place that has served Washingtonians of many stripes for more than a century. Turning the park into an upscale golf course will mean costlier fees and a loss of public space, residents worry.
“It takes away the history of the links here as well as deprives people of having a reasonably inexpensive place to play that is readily accessible to everyone,” said Joe Foley, who said he was in his 70s and had just finished nine holes of golf for $36, including a cart.
A park created by Congress for ‘the people’
East Potomac Park, including the East Potomac Golf Links, was created by a congressional act in 1897, which established the park for the “recreation and the pleasure of the people.” The course opened in 1919.
Trump, who has multiple projects underway in Washington, including a $400 million White House ballroom and the soon-to-begin construction of his triumphal arch, began talking about the city’s public courses in late 2025.
Two months earlier, debris from the demolished East Wing of the White House was dumped at East Potomac, forming a three-story mound near one of its three golf courses, which remains there. The National Park Service has said that the debris tested positive for lead, chromium and other toxic metals.
“When completed, this Course will have the ability to host Major Golf Tournaments, including The U.S. Open, The Ryder Cup, The PGA Championship, and other top PGA Tour events,” Trump posted on social media in June. He said then that work was meant to begin on Sept. 1, but there were no signs of activity on the grounds this week.
An image unveiled in May by Interior Secretary Doug Burgum showed an 18-hole course that he said would deliver “championship-quality golf at affordable, highly discounted rates.”
A lawsuit challenging the golf course renovation argues that the Trump administration’s redevelopment would violate the congressional act that created the park. The government is challenging the standing of the plaintiffs to sue.
At the park, people who spoke to The Associated Press noted that in some of Trump’s other Washington projects, the administration has moved to make irrevocable changes and act faster than courts can respond.
“The government currently is either playing by a different set of rules or just not playing by any rules at all,” said Jason Levitt, 54, ending an hour of high-speed laps on his bike.
At a court hearing Thursday about the park, U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes said as much, telling the government’s attorney she understood the plaintiff’s wariness about changes made before they received proper approval, though she said she had not seen evidence of that in the golf course case.
The administration has already removed dozens of trees from the park, although it says that is routine maintenance work.
The park draws a broad array of visitors
On a visit this week, the park drew cyclists, as well as retirees, workers on lunch break, and a couple of people who declined to speak to The Associated Press because they were meant to be at work as they hit the links for an afternoon of recreation.
With dark clouds rolling in and patrons rushing to the clubhouse, the demographics were on full display: Men, women, black, Hispanic, and white golfers. They said they visited because of the park’s location, cost and history. They were aware that the park and golf courses, as they know it, might be on borrowed time.
Foley, a retired lobbyist, said the region has many “championship caliber courses already” and said he was worried about the president’s plans.
“No one knows what he’s going to do. Are the incredibly popular bike paths in jeopardy, too? Just look at how many bike riders are coming through Potomac Park and the golf course area at noon on a Wednesday,” he said.
Levitt, the cyclist, said he has been coming to the park for 20 years and rides about four times a week. A road that runs the perimeter of the park in one direction offers safe riding away from normal city traffic, but within the city.
“This is seen as a relatively safe place to come and kind of stay out of the way of traffic and everything else.”
Changes are coming, he said. “Let’s just hope that they make changes that are beneficial for everyone rather than just a certain type of golfer.”
Congress controls many of Washington’s local affairs
Washington has long been at the whim of the federal government. Congress maintains significant control over the city’s affairs, including approving the budget and all laws passed by the D.C. Council. The Home Rule Act of 1973 lets residents elect a mayor, a council and neighborhood commissioners.
That autonomy has only been further squeezed under Trump, who last year launched a law enforcement surge in the city that briefly federalized the local police force and deployed the National Guard through to 2029. His imprint on the city has affected not just iconic landmarks and tourist sites but also areas that locals visit frequently, such as East Potomac Park.
Outgoing Mayor Muriel Bowser said this week the city could “stand to attract world-class golf.”
But she told reporters after an event focused on using sports to draw visitors to the nation’s capital, “we still need public access.”
Ryan Bates, 44, said he took up golf as an adult and has been coming to the park weekly for three and a half years. He noted that he has a membership at a private club but prefers to golf at East Potomac, citing its convenient location.
“The most important tenet of it,” he said, packing up his clubs after a round, “is that golf should be an approachable game for people that come from all walks of life.”
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Associated Press writer Steven Sloan contributed to this report.
