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- The 18-hole course will be called “MacLeod” in honor of Trump’s mother, Mary MacLeod, who was born and brought up on the Scottish island of Lewis and later emigrated to New York in 1930.
- A resort hotel with 450 rooms, a conference center, and spa will also be built on the site alongside 950-holiday apartments, up to 500 houses, and 36 golf villas and community facilities.
- Conservationists say that the new course could destroy the coastal sand dunes at nearby Foveran Links which are considered a special scientific interest (SSI) for their unusual shift patterns and biodiversity.
- Locals also objected to the application with concerns about the loss of public space and the impact the course would have on the likes of water supplies, private roads, and nearby estates.
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Donald Trump is set to open a new, golf course in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, which will be named after his mother despite opposition from conservationists and local residents.
The 18-hole course will be called “MacLeod” in honor of Trump’s mother, Mary MacLeod who was born and brought up on the Scottish island of Lewis and emigrated to New York when she was 17-years-old.
A resort hotel with 450 rooms, a conference center, and spa will also be built on the golf site alongside 950-holiday apartments, up to 500 houses, and 36 golf villas and community facilities, The Scotsman reported.
The course will share a golf house and related facilities with the neighboring Trump International Golf Links on the Menie Estate which opened in 2012 but will provide an extra 141 parking spaces.
The construction of the original golf course was controversial due to the impact on coastal sand dunes at nearby Foveran Links which are considered a special scientific interest (SSSI) for their unusual shift patterns and biodiversity.
Conservationists say that the new course could cause the sand dunes to erode even further and last year, Scottish Natural Heritage recommended they be stripped of their SSSI title since they have been "partially destroyed."
Trump pledged up to 6,000 jobs for local people as part of the original development by building a five-star hotel with 450 rooms, shops, a sports complex, timeshare flats, two golf courses, and housing estates.
It has not been profitable since it opened and a previous Business Insider article reported that the president has lost more than $315 million on his golf courses over the past 20 years.
It added that along with Trump Turnberry in Ayr, Scotland and Trump International Resort in Doonbeg, Ireland, Trump International Golf Links has had losses of around $63.6 million.
The president's decision to name the new course after his mother may surprise Trump-watchers. The mother-son relationship is shrouded in mystery. He tends to speak more about his father. Biographer Tim O'Brien told Vanity Fair that he remembered Trump would not voluntarily talk about her.
Despite describing her as "fantastic" and "a homemaker," it is his father's picture that sits in the Oval Office – not hers, reported the Independent.
Mary Trump was likewise reluctant to discuss their relationship. A 2017 Independent article reported that she was very embarrassed by her son when his failing marriage and businesses were the focus of intense media scrutiny in the 80s.
She reportedly asked her then-daughter-in-law, "what sort of son have I created?"