Coast Guard security in waters near Trump’s Mar-a-Lago Palm Beach
Trump’s Mar-a-Lago: Aerial view of the former president’s Palm Beach club
What does Mar-a-Lago look like? A drone video shows an aerial view of former President Donald Trump’s home and private club in Palm Beach.
Greg Lovett, Palm Beach Post
The U.S. Coast Guard is setting up temporary security zones around former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach – a move that could result in fewer bridges being opened between the city and the mainland as officials work to ease traffic congestion due to a U.S. Secret Service-ordered road closure near Trump’s estate.
The Coast Guard announced the move on Friday, Aug. 16, to enforce temporary security zones from Aug. 19 through Nov. 30, times when Trump is home or expected to return home, according to a news release.
When the safety zones are in effect, boaters are prohibited from operating in the Intracoastal waters west of Mar-a-Lago. Boats are permitted to pass through but are not permitted to stop in the Intracoastal waters closer to West Palm Beach and in the Atlantic Ocean east of the property.
Impact of safety measures on the bridge openings between Palm Beach and West Palm
The safety zones are needed so the agency can limit the frequency of opening the three bridges between Palm Beach and West Palm Beach during rush hour, Palm Beach Police Chief Nicholas Caristo told the city council during a meeting on Tuesday.
Caristo floated the idea of limiting bridge openings as a way to ease traffic congestion when he informed the council of the indefinite closure of South Ocean Boulevard, adjacent to Mar-a-Lago. The U.S. Secret Service ordered the road closed — effective at least until the Nov. 5 general election — from the Southern Boulevard roundabout north to the intersection with South County Road.
Opening the bridges less frequently during the busiest hours of the day could contribute to more efficient traffic flow, particularly on the Royal Park Bridge, which bears the brunt of traffic branching off the Southern Boulevard Bridge.
A Coast Guard spokesman said Saturday, Aug. 17, that the agency will not change the bridge opening schedule and that the safety zones only include the area from the water’s surface to the bottom of the Intracoastal Waterway and Atlantic River, not the bridges. The Coast Guard referred the Daily News to the Florida Department of Transportation, which owns, operates and maintains the bridges, and did not respond to a request for comment Saturday afternoon.
After more than a year of temporary measures, the Coast Guard established permanent security zones in 2018, which were put in place for Trump’s visits as president and lifted after he left office.
The permanent zones included changes to bridge opening hours for the Flagler Memorial, Royal Park and Southern Boulevard bridges. These changes were documented in the Federal Register at the time.
According to this 2018 Federal Register entry, the Florida Department of Transportation requested “changes to drawbridge operating hours to ensure orderly vehicular traffic across the Flagler Memorial, Royal Park and Southern Boulevard bridges when the President of the United States, members of the First Family or other individuals under Secret Service protection visit Mar-a-Lago.”
Security plans for Trump’s stay at his Mar-a-Lago home in Palm Beach
When Trump is home, police boats will display flashing blue lights and the Coast Guard Sector Miami will broadcast an alert to boaters on VHF Channel 16, according to the Coast Guard’s latest press release.
The zones announced on Friday are similar to those established during Trump’s presidency, with three zones with different restrictions depending on proximity to Mar-a-Lago:
- West Zone: The Lake Worth Lagoon, from the surface to the bottom, including the Intracoastal Waterway from the southern tip of Everglades Island to approximately 1,000 yards south of the Southern Boulevard Bridge and from the west shore to Fisherman Island. All vessels transiting the West Zone must maintain a uniform speed and must not slow down or stop in the Zone.
- Middle Zone: The Lake Worth Lagoon, from the surface to the bottom, beginning at the southern tip of Everglades Island to approximately 1,000 yards south of the Southern Boulevard Bridge and the eastern shoreline to Fisherman Island. No vessel or person shall enter the middle zone without permission from the Coast Guard or designated agent.
- Eastern Zone: The Atlantic Ocean from the surface to the sea floor, from Banyan Road in the north to Ocean View Road in the south, and from the shore to approximately 1,000 yards east. All vessels transiting the Eastern Zone must maintain a steady speed and must neither slow nor stop in the Zone.
Penalties were not specified in the announcement. When the permanent safety zones were established, violators faced civil penalties of more than $88,000, fines of up to $10,000, or 12 years in prison.
Kristina Webb is a reporter for the Palm Beach Daily News, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. Reach her at [email protected]. Subscribe today to support our journalism..
