Judge Restricts Tree Work at East Potomac Golf Course

A federal judge has barred the Trump administration from removing or damaging more trees at East Potomac Golf Course and required advance notice before irreversible changes, as a lawsuit over the proposed redevelopment proceeds. President Donald Trump says the course will close November 15 for renovation and that his administration will appeal the order. U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes’s preliminary injunction requires the government to provide at least 10 business days’ written notice before closing the course or making irreversible modifications to features of East Potomac Park. The restrictions remain in place while the case continues. The order does not permanently cancel the renovation. Reyes issued the injunction on Monday, October 26, after reviewing conflicting accounts of the project. Trump had publicly described a renovation plan and said work would begin immediately. Government lawyers had argued that no final plan existed and that the tree removal was maintenance separate from a broader redesign. At the preliminary-injunction stage, Reyes concluded that the plaintiffs were likely to succeed in arguing that the government improperly divided its environmental review of...