A federal judge in Washington has temporarily barred the Interior Department and National Park Service from closing East Potomac Park and its public golf course, preserving customary public access while the court considers a challenge to the government’s redevelopment plans.
US District Judge Ana C. Reyes issued the temporary restraining order on November 14, one day before the course and a large part of the park were due to close for 15 months. The order remains in force through November 28, 2026, or until the court issues a further order, whichever comes first.
The ruling requires the East Potomac Golf Course to remain open during the hours it observed on November 14. It does not require the government to continue active golf operations or to manage the course. The government may also carry out repairs and impose narrowly tailored restrictions where an articulated, imminent safety threat makes them necessary.
Any emergency closure must be confined to the area surrounding the hazard and last no longer than reasonably required. The government must notify the court and the plaintiffs within 24 hours, describe the threat and the scope of the restriction, and provide a sworn declaration from a senior Park Service employee. Ohio Drive and the rest of East Potomac Park south of Buckeye Drive must otherwise remain open, subject to limited restrictions around active seawall repairs.
The case was brought by the DC Preservation League and two local golfers. They are challenging plans to replace the historic municipal course with a championship-level course associated with President Donald Trump’s stated redevelopment proposal. The litigation has already produced a preliminary injunction concerning tree removal and irreversible changes at the site.
On the current record, Reyes found that the plaintiffs were likely to succeed on claims that the proposed closure had been adopted without procedures required by the National Environmental Policy Act and the Administrative Procedure Act. The court also treated the government’s stated closure rationales as likely pretextual at this preliminary stage, relying in part on public statements announcing that redevelopment would begin immediately.
Those findings are not a final judgment on the lawfulness of the project. A temporary restraining order preserves the position while the court considers the dispute; it does not cancel the redevelopment or resolve the merits. The Justice Department said the order recognises the Park Service’s ability to restrict access for genuine safety reasons and does not prevent planning for a new course from continuing.
The order directs Interior and the Park Service to circulate it to affected employees, officers, agents and contractors. The government remains subject to the earlier preliminary injunction while the case and its appeal proceed.
