Documents reviewed by Afaaq News reveal "The Cost of Renovating Trump's Golf Course"

- The cost of U.S. President Donald Trump's proposal to build a championship-standard golf course in Washington, D.C., could reach $49 million, according to a document reviewed by Afaq News Network. The National Park Service indicated in the document that it will begin soliciting bids to redevelop the public golf course at "East Potomac Park" and transform it into a professional 18-hole course starting in January 2027.

Initial cost estimates suggest it will range between $20 and $49 million. This project is one of many public construction projects in the capital that Trump has sought to stamp his mark on, which have sparked public outrage and a series of lawsuits.

The U.S. President stated during the summer his desire to begin construction on the golf course this month, while legal disputes continue regarding his attempts to rename the "Kennedy Center" and build a "Triumphal Arch" in the city. Separately, the Department of the Interior awarded a contract worth nearly $400,000 to "Vanasse Hangen Brustlin" based in Massachusetts to provide "electronic design" services for the course.

Democratic Congressman Jared Hoffman from California revealed the existence of this contract during a committee hearing in the House of Representatives on Wednesday. A spokesperson for the Department of the Interior told Afaq News: "The full design of the course has not yet been completed, so any speculation about cost estimates based on a pre-bid notice is premature and irresponsible, especially when it comes from a member of Congress."

Trump - an avid golf fan - publicly proposed for the first time the idea of taking over and expanding the municipal golf course in May. After a site tour, Trump complained that the course was "dilapidated, worn out, extremely dangerous, and outdated," and stated that he would build "one of the greatest golf courses in the world," assuring that it "will remain open to the public."

The courts are currently considering a lawsuit aimed at halting the changes proposed by Trump to the golf course, but critics have warned that approval processes and legal battles have rarely hindered the U.S. president in the past. In the past few weeks, bulldozers have been seen at the site, although the Interior Department confirmed that their presence was for maintenance purposes.

In response to the awarded contract, Democratic lawmakers sent a letter on Wednesday to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, requesting documents that provide further details about the golf course plans by September 30.