Over 1,200 trees will be cut down at Rock Creek Golf Course in Brightwood
- Kim Patterson
- Apr 30, 2024
- 3 min read
Updated: May 14, 2024
Hi Brightwood:
Last year, on November 2, I sent an informational email to the community about the National Park Service (NPS) and National Links Trust's (NLT) plans to remove over 1,200 trees from Rock Creek Golf Course, our neighborhood course on 16th Street in Brightwood. NPS, in coordination with the NLT, plans to improve and rehabilitate the Rock Creek Golf Course, including making space for a driving range and putting green, but in doing so, it will remove over 1,200 trees. Around five hundred of the trees are healthy, and approximately 236 of them are heritage trees (a heritage tree is a large, mature individual tree with a unique value that is considered irreplaceable). Due to the concerns of community members, Casey Trees and similar organizations were able to extend the public comment deadline to facilitate more community input. Over 3,000 comments were submitted to the NPS.
On April 17, 2024, the NPS and NLT announced that they would move forward with the plan to remove over 1,200 trees at Rock Creek Golf Course to build a driving range and put green. Please see the links to read the NPS report and comments:
Many neighbors support the NPS and NLT's rehabilitation plans and look forward to having a nearby driving range and putting green at Rock Creek Golf Course; however, many neighbors oppose the current rehabilitation plans. All neighbors can sign up by May 1 to testify at the National Capital Planning Commission hearing on May 2 and express their views and opinions. Additionally, if you oppose the rehabilitation plans and the removal of over 1,200 trees, you may sign the petitions below.
Sign the PETITIONS:
OPPOSITION PETITION to Secretary of the Interior, DEB HAALAND, Congresswoman, ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON, and the National Park Service Change.org petition
SIGN UP TO TESTIFY at the National Capital Planning Commission MEETING ON MAY 2, 2024. There is still time to sign up to testify either virtually or in writing at the National Capital Planning Commission meeting by May 1st at NOON.
Agenda & Materials (ncpc.gov)
My best,
Commissioner Kim Patterson
ANC 4A05, Brightwood Neighborhood
_____________________________________________________________________________
Statement from Casey Trees
Vincent Drader | Director, Communications & Development | Casey Trees caseytrees.org
Casey Trees was discouraged to learn today (4-17-24) that the National Park Service (NPS) and National Links Trust (NLT) would move forward with a plan that will remove over 1,200 trees from Rock Creek Park Golf Course, over 200 of which are designated Heritage Trees. We’re pleased that the golf course is getting some much-needed attention; however, we’re saddened that the plans require the removal of hundreds of arboreal giants that have graced the park for a hundred years or more. We encourage NPS and NLT to prioritize Rock Creek’s natural resources for the long-term benefit of the golf course, its patrons, and the community.
The plan being implemented was the same plan proposed in the Fall of 2023, widely opposed by DC residents and over 20 local community organizations, which will remove over 1,200 trees that account for 8 acres of DC’s urban forest. The plan has been approved without any amendments or changes that would further save or protect the existing tree canopy. This is even after NPS reported an additional 3,212 correspondences on the proposed rehabilitation plan. While the plan may make the golf course more playable and achieve financial stability for the course's operation, it fails to fully consider the impact this loss of tree canopy will have on the community.
In lieu of a change to the official rehabilitation plan, we urge NPS and NLT to work diligently to save existing tree canopy where they can. NPS reports that the “tree removal will be selective, focusing on tree condition, non-native species, and sustainable tree management.” However, the plan currently is slated to remove hundreds of healthy, mature trees and an estimated 237 heritage trees (trees with trunk circumferences greater than 99”), which bring the greatest ecological and environmental benefits to the neighborhood and surrounding communities.
Though efforts to plant new trees and care for existing trees continue, it takes years for young trees to replace the forest stands that will be lost to this project. Losing this many trees at a time when the District’s canopy is already shrinking is a terrible loss.
For additional details on DC’s tree canopy, see the Casey Trees 2022 Tree Report Card. The 2023 Tree Report Card will be published on April 25th, 2024.
May 3, 2024 Letter Response from Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton
