The Trump administration has ended the lease agreement with the National Links Trust for three golf courses in the District.
The trust is a nonprofit group that makes golf courses affordable and accessible. It has operated the three public golf courses in the District for the last five years.
“We are devastated to report that the Trump administration is officially terminating our 50-year lease with the National Park Service to manage and renovate the three courses. The termination is effective immediately,” the trust posted on X.
The Department of the Interior said it was terminating the leases because the National Links Trust did not implement required capital improvements or fulfill the lease terms.
“The Trump administration prides itself on getting the job done for the American people and partnering with others who share that same goal,” the department said in a statement.
The three courses include the East Potomac Golf Links, the Langston Golf Course and the Rock Creek Park Golf Course.
“Since taking over stewardship of Rock Creek, East Potomac, and Langston courses five years ago, NLT has consistently complied with all lease obligations as we work to ensure the brightest possible future for public golf in DC,” a statement on the NLT website says.
“We are fundamentally in disagreement with the administration’s characterization of NLT as being in default under the lease. We have always had a productive and cooperative working relationship with the National Park Service and have worked hand in hand on all aspects of our golf course operations and development projects,” it says.
The trust said more than $8.5 million had been invested in capital improvement projects at the courses. The trust has agreed to “stay in place for the time being” so that the courses can remain open.
The National Links Trust said all long-term renovation projects have been stopped, including the one in progress at the golf course in Rock Creek Park.
“After five years spent navigating the complex Federal permitting processes, this development is extremely disappointing for all who have supported the project,” the trust says.
It’s unclear what the Trump administration plans to do with the three public courses, but it opens the door for the president, who is an avid golfer and whose company has developed golf courses around the world, to have a say in the courses’ future.
The president has already taken on renovation projects throughout the District, including changes at the White House and the Kennedy Center.
• This story is based in part on wire service reports.
