Trump's plan to use his library as a hotel sparks lawsuit

A group of Miami residents sued President Donald Trump, Florida officials and trustees of Miami Dade College on Tuesday over Trump's planned presidential library, claiming that the college's decision to hand over a coveted parcel of land for the project constitutes an illegal benefit for the president.

The litigants - who include a current Miami Dade College student - allege that the land transfer violates the Constitution's domestic emoluments clause, which bars states from attempting to influence a president by giving him gifts. They argue that Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) and his handpicked board of trustees at the state-operated college were wrong to give a nearly three-acre parcel in downtown Miami to Trump's library foundation last year in exchange for $10. The county's property appraiser had said the land was worth more than $67 million.

"With its waterfront views and central location in bustling Downtown Miami, the [Miami Dade College] Parcel would likely sell for over $300 million on the open market, according to local real estate experts," the litigants wrote of the land. "But President Trump paid nothing for it."

The lawsuit also cites Trump's public comments in March that he expects to use his future library, which is being run by a nonprofit foundation, as a hotel.

The land "is no longer available to serve MDC's student community and Downtown Miami," the litigants write, calling for the transfer to be nullified. "Instead, the land will house a Trump hotel that brings riches to the President."

The lawsuit was filed by the Constitutional Accountability Center, a Washington-area nonprofit, and Gelber Schachter & Greenberg, a Miami-based law firm, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.

The Donald J. Trump Presidential Library Foundation, which is managing the planned library, did not immediately respond to questions about the lawsuit. Spokespeople for DeSantis and Miami Dade College also did not immediately respond to questions about the lawsuit.

The White House defended the project.

"The Trump Presidential Library will be one of the most magnificent buildings in the world and a living testament to the indelible impact President Trump has made on America and its people," spokesman Davis Ingle said in a statement.

The Constitution includes a pair of clauses intended to guard against emoluments, or compensation as a perk of holding office. One clause focuses on domestic gifts and specifies that the president will receive a fixed salary while in office and "shall not receive within that Period any other Emolument from the United States, or any of them." The other clause bars gifts from foreign leaders that are intended to sway the president.

Trump faced several lawsuits during his first presidential term that alleged he was violating the Constitution's emoluments clauses, citing benefits he received through his downtown Washington hotel and other private holdings. The Supreme Court declared those lawsuits moot after Trump left office in January 2021.

Trump unveiled renderings of his planned presidential library March 30, displaying a towering skyscraper replete with golden statues of himself. The planned, roughly 50-story structure looks strikingly different from other postpresidential libraries, which are used to house former presidents' records and archives.

"I don't believe in building libraries or museums," Trump said in the Oval Office the day after posting the renderings, as he discussed plans for his own library. "It's most likely going to be a hotel with a beautiful building underneath and a 747 Air Force One in the lobby."

The president also extolled the planned waterfront property for his new building. "They say it's the best block in Miami, and the state worked with us," Trump said.

Two downtown Miami residents joined the lawsuit, saying that Trump's project would cause them harm by creating noise and traffic, and harming their quality of life.

Dunn's Overtown Farm, a Florida nonprofit run by Marvin Dunn, an emeritus Florida International University professor, also joined the lawsuit. Dunn said he had begun conversations three years ago with Miami Dade College students about building an urban farm for students to use, and Dunn said that he wanted to build that farm on the parcel of the land that Miami Dade College gave to Trump.

In a recent interview, Dunn criticized the renderings and the president's comments about using the property for a hotel.

"I was horrified when I saw that," Dunn said, adding that the land could have been used to teach students or sold to increase the college's endowment. "Clearly it's not a library … this is about a wrong land grab, at the expense of students in this community."

Dunn previously sued over the library project, saying last year that moves by the college's board and Florida officials to swiftly transfer land for Trump's library was a violation of Florida's open-records laws. A federal judge sided with Dunn and temporarily blocked the transfer, prompting the college's board to hold a second vote.

Presidential libraries typically serve as highly curated museums, touting the president's record and offering their interpretation of events that unfolded during their tenures, and are funded by private donations.

Democrats have questioned the Trump administration and companies that have committed to giving money to Trump's library, pressing for details after the original library fund was dissolved last year.

Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Massachusetts) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Connecticut) and Rep. Melanie Stansbury (D-New Mexico) last month wrote to Trump, asking him to explain the status of tens of millions of dollars pledged to the project by ABC, Meta, Paramount and X. The companies reached legal settlements with Trump in the months after the 2024 presidential election, seeking to resolve claims they had harmed him by restricting his access to social media or defaming him in their coverage, but have declined to detail the status of those donations.

"The companies do not know or are unwilling to share their information about what happened to the millions of dollars given to the Fund," the Democrats wrote to Trump, saying that they were seeking an update. A spokesperson said Tuesday that they had not received an answer from the president.

Congressional Democrats have also cited the Constitution's emoluments clauses when criticizing deals struck by Trump and his family members' businesses, saying that Trump has wrongly sought to profit off his presidency.

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