The Trump Organization is planning a massive real estate development, according to a new report by Martyn McLaughlin in The Scotsman.

“In what would be one of the most ambitious and expensive foreign projects undertaken by Donald Trump’s family business since he assumed the presidency, his company has commissioned a detailed masterplan to develop as many as 225 properties, as well as leisure facilities and shops, on an expanse of rolling farmland adjacent to Turnberry’s lauded Ailsa course, a four-time host of golf’s Open Championship,” the Scottish newspaper reported.

“Given the Trump Organisation has yet to formally submit a planning application, it has not announced the project or publicised its intentions. But Scotland on Sunday has obtained a series of documents prepared on its behalf by an architectural practice and one of the nation’s leading planning lawyers. Together, they spell out the company’s grand ambitions for the 114 year old resort, arguably the most prestigious of all Trump’s properties,” The Scotsman reported. “A key selling point put forward by the Trump Organisation’s architects is the creation of ‘high-end private residential homes for retirement living,’ which it says would offer ‘permanent tranquility and respite’ and help address a ‘social need’ amongst an ageing population.”

McLaughlin laid out a thread on Twitter laying out his reporting:

Here’s a thread, with pics by my colleague @2point8_photos, spelling out some of the issues in play. The most obvious one is that this retreat, if approved, would represent one of the most ambitious and expensive projects undertaken by Trump’s firm since he became president. pic.twitter.com/qZAlPmUWtx

— Martyn McLaughlin (@MartynMcL) July 11, 2020

The Trump Org has not announced this development, nor is it known about beyond a select few individuals and firms. But I've obtained a 15-page masterplan document produced by Trump Org's architects which sets out the scale of its vision in considerable detail. pic.twitter.com/Mqe9LyS7Sb

— Martyn McLaughlin (@MartynMcL) July 11, 2020

The 225 units, along with amenities, shops, trails, etc would be built in phases. It’s unclear how much would be spent, how it'll be financed, or how Covid-19 will impact on the plans. I repeatedly asked Trump Org and Trump Turnberry for comment. Neither firm responded.

— Martyn McLaughlin (@MartynMcL) July 11, 2020

Since Trump bought it in 2014, Turnberry's incurred losses of £42m+. It’s reliant on £114m+ in loans from a NY revocable trust he set up. Yet Trump Org seems determined to spend more £££ on an asset which stubbornly refuses to turn a profit. It is an interesting business plan.

— Martyn McLaughlin (@MartynMcL) July 11, 2020

If you don't know what UWOs are, how they work, and why they're mentioned in relation to Trump, this story I wrote for @TheScotsman in February might help: https://t.co/wA0GpIXxnI

— Martyn McLaughlin (@MartynMcL) July 11, 2020

The following year, I learned local planning officials had rejected the request to rezone swaths of farmland earmarked for the development. I asked the Trump Org how the decision would impact on its investment at Turnberry. Answer came there none: https://t.co/5IFwVrn0qa

— Martyn McLaughlin (@MartynMcL) July 11, 2020

It switched development from a small parcel of land near the village of Maidens to a far bigger expanse of farmland running alongside a disused airstrip at Turnberry. It once hosted the RAF during both world wars, but is used nowadays by dog walkers and horse riders. pic.twitter.com/xPsixOsp3D

— Martyn McLaughlin (@MartynMcL) July 11, 2020

But Trump Org is free at any time to submit a planning application for its new retreat. Its proposed economic benefits would be judged alongside the finalised LDP. In a remote, rural region dealing with a post-Covid-19 (and Brexit) financial reality, that's not insignificant.

— Martyn McLaughlin (@MartynMcL) July 11, 2020

More to come on this, but if you have info or a tip about Trump Org’s biz in Scotland, my DMs are open, or you email me at martynmcl at protonmail dot com. You can also read some of my previous Trump stories on my online portfolio. https://t.co/U2FFDsEVSG Thanks for reading.

— Martyn McLaughlin (@MartynMcL) July 11, 2020

Enjoy good journalism?

… then let us make a small request. The COVID crisis has cut advertising rates in half, and we need your help. Like you, we here at Raw Story believe in the power of progressive journalism. Raw Story readers power David Cay Johnston’s DCReport, which we've expanded to keep watch in Washington. We’ve exposed billionaire tax evasion and uncovered White House efforts to poison our water. We’ve revealed financial scams that prey on veterans, and legal efforts to harm workers exploited by abusive bosses. And unlike other news outlets, we’ve decided to make our original content free. But we need your support to do what we do.

Raw Story is independent. Unhinged from corporate overlords, we fight to ensure no one is forgotten.

We need your support in this difficult time. Every reader contribution, whatever the amount, makes a tremendous difference. Invest with us. Make a one-time contribution to Raw Story Investigates, or click here to become a subscriber. Thank you. Click to donate by check.

Value Raw Story?

… then let us make a small request. The COVID crisis has cut advertising rates in half, and we need your help. Like you, we believe in the power of progressive journalism — and we’re investing in investigative reporting as other publications give it the ax. Raw Story readers power David Cay Johnston’s DCReport, which we've expanded to keep watch in Washington. We’ve exposed billionaire tax evasion and uncovered White House efforts to poison our water. We’ve revealed financial scams that prey on veterans, and efforts to harm workers exploited by abusive bosses. We need your support to do what we do.

Raw Story is independent. You won’t find mainstream media bias here. Every reader contribution, whatever the amount, makes a tremendous difference. Invest with us in the future. Make a one-time contribution to Raw Story Investigates, or click here to become a subscriber. Thank you.