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Canoers Gain Access To The Water Near Trump Golf Course, Even When President Is There
WAMU | MAR 22, 3:25 PM
Canoers Gain Access To The Water Near Trump Golf Course, Even When President Is There
Jacob Fenston
The U.S. Coast Guard is relaxing restrictions on access to the Potomac River along the Trump National Golf Club in Loudoun County. Under new rules published on Thursday, kayers, canoers and other boaters will be able to access the river on the Virginia side directly upstream and downstream of the golf course and have unimpeded access on the Maryland side, even when the president is golfing. ... “My initial reaction was somewhere between disbelief and absolute excitement,” says Barbara Brown, chair of the Canoe Cruisers Association. The local paddling group filed a lawsuit against the Coast Guard in September last year over the river restrictions. “The Coast Guard basically rescinded the original directive and the new directive took into account all of the issues that we had raised,” Brown says.
The issue of access to the Potomac came to a head in March 2017. On five occasions that spring and summer, the Secret Service asked the Coast Guard, on short notice, to close the river along the golf course from shore to shore, for the security of “high-ranking United States government officials at the golf club.” These unannounced closures outraged boaters, who crowd that section of the river during warm months. ... Then in July 2017, the Coast Guard created a permanent security zone, prompting further outcry. The security zone allowed officials to close a two-mile section of the river whenever the president or other dignitaries were present.
....
‘A Reasonable Compromise’
“The most important change is that they shrunk the security zone,” says Barbara Brown with Canoe Cruisers. The new security zone is shorter — allowing access to important recreational areas on the Virginia side both upstream and downstream of the golf course. Just upstream of the golf club, Algonkian Regional Park — a popular spot to launch boats — is now outside the security zone. Downstream, kayakers will now be able to access the George Washington Canal, just east of the Trump club. The security zone is also narrower, allowing boaters to use the half of the river on the Maryland side unrestricted.
The new rule also provides for better notification of when security restrictions are in place. Nitin Shaw, an attorney with Democracy Forward who represented the canoers, says the Coast Guard initially used a marine VHF radio channel to notify the public. ... “Nobody who’s out on the river has one of these radios so it was a totally useless method of notice,” Shaw says. “The Coast Guard has acknowledged that that was a mistake.” Now the agency will post closures online, and provide a dial-in phone line, where callers can hear a recording if the restrictions are in place. “All in all this was a tremendous victory,” says Shaw. ... The new rules go into effect immediately. ... “I think the lawsuit was absolutely crucial,” says Brown. Now canoers and high-ranking golfers will be able to co-exist peacefully. Trump has played golf or watched golf at the Virginia club 43 times since taking office, according to the website trumpgolfcount.com, which tracks the president’s golf outings.
....
Canoers Gain Access To The Water Near Trump Golf Course, Even When President Is There
Jacob Fenston
The U.S. Coast Guard is relaxing restrictions on access to the Potomac River along the Trump National Golf Club in Loudoun County. Under new rules published on Thursday, kayers, canoers and other boaters will be able to access the river on the Virginia side directly upstream and downstream of the golf course and have unimpeded access on the Maryland side, even when the president is golfing. ... “My initial reaction was somewhere between disbelief and absolute excitement,” says Barbara Brown, chair of the Canoe Cruisers Association. The local paddling group filed a lawsuit against the Coast Guard in September last year over the river restrictions. “The Coast Guard basically rescinded the original directive and the new directive took into account all of the issues that we had raised,” Brown says.
The issue of access to the Potomac came to a head in March 2017. On five occasions that spring and summer, the Secret Service asked the Coast Guard, on short notice, to close the river along the golf course from shore to shore, for the security of “high-ranking United States government officials at the golf club.” These unannounced closures outraged boaters, who crowd that section of the river during warm months. ... Then in July 2017, the Coast Guard created a permanent security zone, prompting further outcry. The security zone allowed officials to close a two-mile section of the river whenever the president or other dignitaries were present.
....
‘A Reasonable Compromise’
“The most important change is that they shrunk the security zone,” says Barbara Brown with Canoe Cruisers. The new security zone is shorter — allowing access to important recreational areas on the Virginia side both upstream and downstream of the golf course. Just upstream of the golf club, Algonkian Regional Park — a popular spot to launch boats — is now outside the security zone. Downstream, kayakers will now be able to access the George Washington Canal, just east of the Trump club. The security zone is also narrower, allowing boaters to use the half of the river on the Maryland side unrestricted.
The new rule also provides for better notification of when security restrictions are in place. Nitin Shaw, an attorney with Democracy Forward who represented the canoers, says the Coast Guard initially used a marine VHF radio channel to notify the public. ... “Nobody who’s out on the river has one of these radios so it was a totally useless method of notice,” Shaw says. “The Coast Guard has acknowledged that that was a mistake.” Now the agency will post closures online, and provide a dial-in phone line, where callers can hear a recording if the restrictions are in place. “All in all this was a tremendous victory,” says Shaw. ... The new rules go into effect immediately. ... “I think the lawsuit was absolutely crucial,” says Brown. Now canoers and high-ranking golfers will be able to co-exist peacefully. Trump has played golf or watched golf at the Virginia club 43 times since taking office, according to the website trumpgolfcount.com, which tracks the president’s golf outings.
....