Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
So long, Mar-a-Lago
New Jersey expected to be next Trump getaway.
Palm Beach appears to be getting another reprieve this weekend from road closings, flight delays and other presidential security hassles.
That’s because, Bedminster Township, N.J., is expected to get a turn hosting one of President Donald Trump’s White House getaways.
Friday through Sunday, Bedminster is scheduled to have temporary security restrictions that come with presidential travel, according to a notice issued Monday by the Federal Aviation Administration.
Bedminster is home to The Trump National Golf Club, which stretches across 600 acres just 40 minutes from Manhattan, according to the club website.
Since taking office, Trump has made seven visits to his Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach. His most recent visit to Palm Beach was a four-day stay, from April 13-16, for the Easter holiday.
But Mar-a-Lago usually closes for the summer, when many seasonal Palm Beach residents head to vacation homes in the Hamptons and other northern locations.
Now Palm Beach officials are expecting to see less of Trump until the town’s social season resumes in the fall.
A Manhattan penthouse and an estate in Bedford, N.Y., are among Trump’s northern alternatives to Mar-a-Lago during Florida’s sweltering summer. Trump also has three golf clubs in New York and two in New Jersey, including the club in Bedminster.
Even with a New Jersey trip this weekend and the Mar-a-Lago Club due to close as Palm Beach’s peak season passes, Trump could still decide to make summertime stops at what he dubbed his Southern White House.
Trump has already used Mar-a-Lago to host meetings with the leaders of Japan and China, while also attending parties and spending time at nearby Trump golf clubs in Jupiter and West Palm Beach during his Palm Beach stays.
The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office estimates that Trump’s visits since being elected have cost South Florida law enforcement agencies nearly $4 million for helping provide security.
Along with droves of demonstrators and a host of international media attention, the presidential visits trigger security measures that can affect everyone from commuters to beach-goers.
Presidential motorcades temporarily close roads and block traffic as Trump moves to and from Mar-a-Lago, creating traffic jams from the island to I-95.
Throughout his visits, drivers, pedestrians and bike riders alike are blocked from using South Ocean Boulevard in front of Mar-a-Lago, which hampers traffic flow in Palm Beach.
Commercial vehicles, including anything larger than a passenger van, aren’t allowed to use the Southern Boulevard bridge, near Mar-a-Lago during Trump’s stays.
Also, much of the beach is also off-limits in front of the presidential estate and the Coast Guard keeps fishermen and other boaters away from the shoreline.
The president flying in and out of West Palm Beach can create delays for commercial flights while he is at Palm Beach International Airport and private jets have started flying to Boca Raton and other nearby alternatives to avoid security delays.
In addition, local aviation businesses have been disrupted because flight training, airplane rentals and sightseeing flights are not allowed within 30 nautical miles of Mar-a-Lago during presidential visits.