Trump’s victory changes the security situation in Palm Beach

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What’s next for security around President-elect Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach?

To get a sense of what residents can expect in the coming months and years as Trump begins his second term in the White House, there is some precedent: Trump’s four years as president.

However, sources previously told the Daily News that while the past provides good indications of what is to come, security may be tighter this time.

More frequent visits possible

For the first two years of his tenure in the White House, Trump’s permanent residence was in New York.

That changed in 2019 when he and first lady Melania Trump claimed Palm Beach as their home, filing a declaration of residence with the Palm Beach County Clerk’s Office.

Until last year, Trump mostly spent weekends at Mar-a-Lago during Palm Beach’s social season, with longer visits during Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter.

During the campaign last year, Trump spent increasing amounts of time at his Palm Beach home. Whereas he had previously found it difficult to spend more than a few days at Mar-a-Lago in the summer, he now preferred Palm Beach to New York and his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey, where he usually spent most of his time. during the summer months.

In the lead-up to his inauguration in January, a Trump adviser told The Palm Beach Post that Trump would lead his transition from Mar-a-Lago.

After the inauguration, Trump will be able to spend more time at the White House during the week. But he is expected to visit on weekends and favor trips to Mar-a-Lago over trips to the presidential retreat at Camp David, as he did during his first term.

Traffic and road closures

One of the biggest questions Palm Beach residents, business owners and visitors have been asking in recent days has been: What’s next for South Ocean Boulevard?

The road has been closed first completely and then intermittently since July 20, when the U.S. Secret Service ordered it closed from the South Boulevard roundabout north to the intersection with South County Road. The move comes in the wake of an attack on Trump’s July 13 campaign rally that left the presidential candidate and two supporters wounded and another dead.

It was initially announced that the Southern Ocean was to be completely closed 24 hours a day every day until at least the general election on 5 November. The Secret Service, Palm Beach, Mar-a-Lago and the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office announced an agreement in August to reopen the road once Trump is gone for a long enough period of time that it makes sense from a logistical and security standpoint to remove the checkpoints. points. officials said.

Residents and people with businesses in the area blocked by the road closure must enter through the north checkpoint on South County Road, while only emergency vehicles can pass through the south checkpoint.

Earlier this year, a former Secret Service agent told the Daily News that South Ocean Boulevard should have been closed as soon as Trump was elected, citing serious concerns about how close vehicles could get to Mar-a-Lago when driving past on South Ocean Boulevard. .

Another security expert told the Daily News that if Trump wins a second term in the White House, officials may have to consider a more permanent option near Mar-a-Lago to provide protection every day, even when Trump is not there.

During Trump’s first term, periodic road closures destroyed Palm Beach. Business owners decried the lack of traffic in Midtown, and people complained of hours-long delays on the Royal Park Bridge. It’s unclear what will happen between now and Inauguration Day, but residents can expect that as Trump makes his transition from Mar-a-Lago, there will be a few moments when South Ocean Boulevard can reopen.

Donald Trump supporters react to 2024 election results at Mar-a-Lago

Trump supporters in Palm Beach gathered to celebrate his victory on the bridge near Mar-a-Lago, where security was heightened on election night.

Air service from Palm Beach International

During Trump’s first term as president, the Federal Aviation Administration diverted air traffic from Mar-a-Lago to protect airspace over the Palm Beach property while Trump was there.

The FAA imposed temporary flight restrictions that prevented all but essential air travel in the area and prevented planes from taking off and landing at the Palm Beach County General Aviation Airport on Lantana Road. almost bankrupted this facility. A banner hanging business that operated out of Lantana Airport for ten years. went bankrupt in 2017 due to restrictions.

Flight restrictions were imposed over Mar-a-Lago after Trump was there on July 13, but they were not as strict as during his time in the White House. It is unclear how the FAA will act on flight restrictions now that Trump has been elected.

Coast Guard restrictions

Those who regularly pass by Mar-a-Lago by boat know in recent weeks that security has been heightened in the waters surrounding the property.

During Trump’s first term, the U.S. Coast Guard had its first temporary security zones until 2018, when the agency created permanent security zones around Mar-a-Lago that prevented boaters from entering the Intracoastal Waterway closest to the club while Trump was home. Boats could pass, but not stop, in the Intracoastal region further west of Mar-a-Lago and east of the estate in the Atlantic Ocean.

The Coast Guard announced in August that he will implement these security zones again temporarily during Trump’s visits to Palm Beach. The safety zones also include changes to the opening schedule of the three bridges connecting West Palm Beach to Palm Beach.

When Trump is home, the Flagler Memorial and Southern Boulevard bridges have the same opening schedule:

From Monday to Friday: from 7:30 to 9 am the bridge will open every quarter of an hour; from 9:00 to 14:15 the bridge will open at quarter and three-quarter hours; from 14:15 to 18:00 the bridge will open every quarter of an hour; and from 18:00 to 7:30 the bridge will open at quarter and three-quarter hours.
Saturday, Sunday and Federal Holidays: The bridge will open in a quarter and three quarter hours.

The South Boulevard Bridge may also close without warning to allow motorcades to pass unimpeded, the Coast Guard said. Because bridge opening times are staggered, the Royal Park Bridge’s schedule when Trump is in town differs from the other two bridges’ schedules:

From Monday to Friday: from 7:30 to 9 am the bridge will open every half hour; from 9:00 to 14:15 the bridge will operate every hour and a half; from 14:15 to 18:00 the bridge will open in half an hour; and from 18:00 to 7:30 the bridge will open every hour and a half.
Saturday, Sunday and federal holidays: the bridge will open at one and a half hours.

Defense costs

Trump’s first 27 visits to Mar-a-Lago as president cost local governments and law enforcement about $13.7 million. The Palm Beach Post reported this in November 2020..

Since July, when security around Trump was beefed up, Palm Beach has spent roughly $3,600 a day, and the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office has spent an average of an additional $93,000 a day protecting Trump while he is at Mar-a-Lago. according to a September letter sent by local officials to members of Congress. who represent Palm Beach County.

Officials told the Daily News that Trump’s second term in the White House would lead to additional costs.

During Trump’s first term, Palm Beach County and New York City officials worked with the federal government to create a grant program—the Presidential Home Defense Assistance Grant—that reimbursed state and local governments for law enforcement costs that had risen sharply as agencies worked to protect the sitting president. a president who has frequently visited several personal properties, some of which are in high-traffic areas such as Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach and Trump Tower in New York City.

The grant is administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Show records The amount budgeted for the annual grant has dropped since Trump left office, from $41 million available each year from 2017 to 2020 to $12.7 million in 2021 to $3 million annually in 2022 and 2023.

It is unclear how much the government will budget for the coming financial year.