In addition to appearing poised for his next ventures in politics and media, Donald Trump has announced a sizable project in the industry that first made him a celebrity.
Trump is planning to apply to build 2,300 luxury homes as part of an expansion of his Trump National Doral resort in Florida. The former president said in a statement he recently “spent millions of dollars” on the resort’s Blue Monster golf course and the expansion would also add commercial and retail space to the resort.
The resort, which Trump bought out of bankruptcy in 2012 for a reported $150 million, includes four golf courses and a luxury hotel. Trump borrowed $125 million from Deutsche Bank and planned $250 million in renovations.
The resort has had its fair share of difficulties since the onset of the pandemic. In April 2020, the resort furloughed 560 employees weeks after it temporarily closed on March 23. BLT Prime Doral, a restaurant at the resort, also laid off 98 people and shut down temporarily.
In past disclosures, Trump touted the property as the Trump Organization’s most profitable report. But overall revenue at the golf resort dropped from 2015 to April 2020, according to the Washington Post, and net operating income declined by 69 percent from 2015 to 2017.
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A New York Times investigation into the president’s tax returns published in September 2020 detailed Trump’s golf club and resort properties had reported combined losses of more than $315 million since 2000. From 2012 to 2018, Trump National Doral lost $162 million, according to the Times. Doral reportedly asked Deutsche for a delay on loan payments, set to come due in 2023.
Trump initially laid low after leaving office, but has since reentered the business world.
A media company created in the wake of his administration’s departure is set to merge with Digital World Acquisition Corp. after raising $1 billion in PIPE funding last month, Bloomberg reported.
Trump is also in line to potentially score a profit of more than $100 million from the sale of Trump International in Washington, D.C. CGI Merchant Group was reported in December to be in contract to buy the hotel lease for $375 million. If the sale closes, the 263-key hotel will reportedly drop the Trump name and take on branding and management from Hilton’s Waldorf Astoria Group.