In a preliminary injunction issued Monday, U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes barred the government from cutting, substantially pruning or otherwise damaging trees in the park without a court order. The government must also give at least 10 business days’ written notice before closing any part of the park or making an irreversible modification there.

President Donald Trump said on social media that the Department of the Interior would appeal. He has also said construction will start Nov. 15 and the park will be closed for 15 months. The court’s order may complicate that timeline.

East Potomac Park, on a peninsula between the Potomac and Anacostia rivers, is used by golfers as well as runners, cyclists and birders. A design Trump has shared would combine the site’s three golf courses into one, apparently taking over much of the peninsula and removing the perimeter road used by people exercising there. Questions remain about the final design and how it would affect public access.

The D.C. Preservation League and two local golfers sued earlier this year to stop the renovation. Their case intensified after the tree removal, which government officials described in court as separate from any golf course redevelopment. Reyes wrote that the administration’s explanations did not persuasively account for the gap between that testimony and Trump’s public statements about starting work.

“Rarely, if ever, has the United States Department of Justice urged a federal court not to believe the sitting president,” Reyes wrote in her 70-page opinion.

The judge said the evidence indicated that a renovation plan existed before Oct. 15, despite administration lawyers’ assertions that there was no final plan. She also rejected the government’s explanation that the tree-cutting was simply part of implementing recommendations in a 2019 National Park Service report, calling that rationale “pretextual.”

The plaintiffs argue that the government has treated parts of the work as separate projects to avoid required environmental review. Reyes said the Interior Department likely violated federal environmental law by splitting up its review of the plan’s effects.

The ruling does not decide the underlying case. Reyes wrote that it preserves the status quo while both sides litigate. Skye Perryman, president of Democracy Forward, the nonprofit representing the plaintiffs, said the group was grateful the court intervened and looked forward to arguing the case.

Trump has said the redesigned course could host major events such as the PGA Championship and Ryder Cup while remaining open to the public, with reduced rates for D.C. residents. The court’s order means any major work at the park must now meet the notice requirements or receive judicial approval while the lawsuit continues.