A major road adjacent to former President Donald Trump’s Florida home has been closed and traffic restricted for nearly a month, likely leading to the closure of his Mar-a-Lago resort as social season opens on the island and the crucial 2024 election approaches.
The Secret Service closed South Ocean Boulevard one week after the attempted assassination of President Trump at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13. The road closure has raised safety concerns for local residents, including emergency responders, caregivers, everyday traffic and even people worried about other acts of violence that may occur near the Trump residence.
Palm Beach Mayor Daniel Moore said with South Ocean Boulevard closed at the start of the social season, Trump’s resort was essentially closed as well.
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Former US President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida. (Reuters/Marco Bello)
The road was closed on July 20th to protect the sprawling club and the former president himself, and is due to remain closed until the Nov. 5 election.
Councilwoman Julie Araskog asked at Tuesday’s city council meeting what will be done about roads once social season picks up in the fall.
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“My view is that if the road is closed, the Mar-a-Lago club is closed,” the mayor responded. “There’s no way we’re going to have 350 people in the club. It’s completely unreasonable to have 350 strangers in the club when the road is closed.”
Security guards stand around former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida, on Monday, April 3, 2023, as Trump travels to New York for his arraignment on Tuesday on charges related to hush money payments. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
The mayor, city council members, town officials and residents who attended the meeting all agreed they don’t want anything to happen to Trump and that politics have no influence on their thinking. Palm Beach Post Reported.
“But you can’t have both men and women at the same time,” Moore said. “The club is either open or it’s not open.”
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According to The Washington Post, the latest closures will close roads near Mar-a-Lago 24 hours a day, seven days a week, at least during the election period, regardless of whether Trump is there or not. When Trump was president, South Ocean Boulevard near the club was only closed when he was in Palm Beach.
Republican presidential candidate and former president Donald Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson (Republican, Louisiana) held a press conference at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago villa in Palm Beach, Florida, on April 12, 2024. Both men spoke about “election integrity,” one of the former president’s top priorities. (Joe Raedl/Getty Images)
The road closures have caused headaches for locals and tourists trying to get around the island, with delivery drivers being forced to take an hour to travel routes that would normally take 10 minutes, and large fire engines having to maneuver around traffic jams and barricades, as well as ambulances and police vehicles.
“There’s a winding road and there are obstacles we have to overcome,” Palm Beach Fire Rescue Capt. Sean Baker said at the council meeting.
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Councillor Araskog said he has received calls from residents who want to feel safer during this time.
“Residents don’t feel safe right now,” Araskog said.
