The city shanked its shot at kicking Donald Trump’s company out of its management role at a Bronx golf course when a judge ruled Friday that the city’s grounds for doing so were flawed.
According to the New York Post, the city claimed that the Trump Organization couldn’t continue to run the Trump Golf Links at Ferry Point because the former president’s connection to events such as the Jan. 6, 2021 riots at the Capitol would adversely affect the course’s ability to attract tournaments.
But State Supreme Court Justice Debra James gave the Trump Organization a mulligan when she ruled that point moot because Trump’s contract with the city didn’t demand tournaments occur there — and only sought a cut of the proceeds for the city when they do.
The city does have a clause in the contract allowing it to kick the Trump Organization out of the clubhouse at will — if it coughs up a “termination payment” believed to be around $30 million, according to the New York Times.
The ruling allowed the organization to choose if it wants to continue running the Jack Nicklaus-designed course at the foot of the Bronx-Whitestone Bridge that opened in 2015, and Trump’s son Eric told the Post the firm will stay.
“The judge didn’t buy their nonsense and this is a well-reasoned and appropriate decision and we look forward to running the best golf course for years to come,” he said.
The contract with the city runs through 2035. It is unclear if the Adams administration plans to appeal the decision.
The initial plan to terminate the contract came back in 2020 when then-Mayor Bill de Blasio claimed the city had a right to do so because Donald Trump’s actions in Washington on Jan. 6 qualified as criminal activity.
City lawyers ultimately didn’t pursue that rationale, and Eric Trump said that the ruling in the Trump Organization’s favor proved the scheme was politically motivated.
“De Blasio did this for his own political theater,” Eric Trump told the Post. “He wasted tremendous amounts of time and city resources on his own vendetta. He is a disgrace to New York and everyone is glad he is gone.”
[NY Post] — Vince DiMiceli