The government says it will close a beloved DC park on Sunday. Will a judge intervene? : NPR
The National Park Service wants to close most of East Potomac Park, more than just the golf course. The perimeter loop is popular with runners and cyclists.
National Park Service
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National Park Service
Federal Judge Ana Reyes questioned the government on Friday about its plans for East Potomac Park and indicated she could order it to remain open despite President Trump’s renovation wishes.
Transcription
SCOTT DETROW, HOST:
Washington, D.C.’s most beloved parks could close indefinitely Sunday unless a judge decides to intervene. East Potomac Park is home to the municipal golf course that President Trump wants to redevelop into what he calls a championship venue. But at a hearing today, the administration’s lawyers argued that repairs are needed not only to the golf course but to the entire recreation area surrounding it. NPR’s Rachel Treisman watched the hearing and joins us now. Hi, Rachel.
RACHEL TREISMAN, BYLINE: Hey, Scott.
DETROW: Did the judge indicate how she would rule?
TREISMAN: District Judge Ana Reyes seemed likely to act, but she seemed to be wondering what exactly she could tell the government to do. The government argues that it must close almost the entire park on Sunday for two main reasons. This is the day the lease expires with the current operator of the golf course and because they want to repair the park’s sea wall, which has been deteriorating for years. Reyes didn’t really seem convinced by this. The government chose to terminate its operating lease on November 15, the date President Trump announced the park’s closure. And the government has acknowledged that it does not yet have a plan to repair the seawall or a contract to redevelop the golf course. Reyes suggested she would rule on Saturday. We’ll have to see if she orders the park to stay open or if she goes even further and asks the government to keep the golf course open as well.
DETROW: You’ve been listening to this since 10 a.m. What are the main sticking points today?
TREISMAN: Yeah. There has been plenty of discussion about how Trump’s proposed overhaul would change a space that so many people here in Washington love. Critics say the scale of the course would make it less accessible to beginners and eliminate the perimeter loop that joggers use daily as well as for big races, like the Cherry Blossom 10 miler. I spoke to event director Rob Wolfe, who is still hopeful the race can take place in April.
ROB WOLFE: It’s really important that people understand that if this road disappears, hundreds if not thousands of people will lose it every day.
TREISMAN: The government recently began arguing that the park should be closed because the seawall poses a safety problem. At one point, the attorney raised the risk of unsupervised children falling into the Potomac River at night. The judge seemed rather incredulous. She kept asking why these concerns weren’t addressed sooner and if the entire park really needed to be closed for this.
DETROW: How definitive are these golf course plans? I mean, it all seems so uncertain.
TREISMAN: Absolutely. The government has already submitted this proposal to two different federal commissions, but it still needs to go through environmental reviews and get public input. Reyes really pressed the government lawyer on whether it was too late for him to change course, especially given how many people here are opposed to the plan. Reyes says she has received death threats over the case. There were protests from cyclists and bird watchers. At one point, Reyes asked those in the courtroom how many of them were there because they care about East Potomac Park and almost all of them raised their hands.
DETROW: And I think that gets to a bigger story here. You know, one of the reasons the case has gotten so much attention is because of the tensions between the judge and the government and because of the pointed rulings that the judge made saying you’re not cooperating. Tell us about that.
TREISMAN: Yeah. Reyes has been vocal about his sense of being misled by this administration – by its officials, by its lawyers. Two weeks ago, at the last hearing, she announced that she would open an investigation into possible attorney misconduct, and that there is a long history there with the administration cutting down hundreds of trees in October after telling her they would not do so, with administration officials telling her there was no final plan to close the course, although the president said so online. Reyes chose a lawyer from the Trump administration from his first term to lead this investigation, but today the government objected, meaning Reyes will likely lead this investigation herself.
DETROW: The golf course is, you know, as you’ve covered, one of several projects that are currently going through the courts. You have the proposed bow. You have the Kennedy Center that he wants to make the Trump Kennedy Center. What other controls are possible on these projects?
TREISMAN: Well, Democrats have said they hope to use their new majority in Congress to fight back. This could include blocking funding or holding oversight hearings. Judge Reyes actually opened today’s hearing by referencing a recent CNN report claiming that the Interior Department destroyed documents related to Trump’s construction plans, which he denies. Today, Reyes asked the government lawyer if he had heard about it. He said no, and she said that if she finds out otherwise, there will be consequences in a zeptosecond. This is, she says, the shortest time measurement ever recorded in a laboratory.
DETROW: NPR’s Rachel Treisman. Thank you so much.
TREISMAN: Thank you, Scott.
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