Traffic plan for Trump's Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach would limit event timing and parking

An agreement between Palm Beach and former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago Club about how to manage traffic will wait another month for formal approval.

The Town Council voted 4-1, with outgoing council President Maggie Zeidman dissenting, at its March 12 meeting to defer signing an update of the traffic management plan, which was written in 1999.

More: Palm Beach officials call for fewer rush hour events at Mar-a-Lago to ease traffic issues

While council members seemed supportive of the plan, they requested more time to review changes submitted to them the day before the meeting, with the discussion at times growing heated.

"I just can't get something the night before and be expected to be prepared today," said Councilwoman Julie Araskog, adding that she didn't have time to go through the changes and she felt the public also needed time to review the plan.

Attorney Harvey Oyer — representing the Mar-a-Lago Club — said he agreed that getting last-minute changes on an agenda item was not helpful. He offered to go through each change that had been made in the most recent draft.

Should the council delay approving the plan, it would also delay having the document in place to hold Mar-a-Lago accountable for traffic management issues, he said.

"Everything in here is a give by Mar-a-Lago to help the public," Oyer said. At the council's request, he said he would ask Mar-a-Lago to abide by the proposed plan until it receives formal approval, which could happen as early as the council's April 9 meeting when it is due to return.

What changed?

The newest draft completed March 8 and sent to the council on March 11 featured four major updates from the previous version, Oyer said:

• Mar-a-Lago must notify Palm Beach police of all special events, not just the large ones.

• For large events that require overflow parking, the parking lot of the neighboring Bath and Tennis Club on South Ocean Boulevard must be fully operational 45 minutes before the event.

• Off-duty officers hired by Mar-a-Lago to direct traffic may not use their vehicles' overhead lights.

• The director of security at Mar-a-Lago will be solely responsible to implement the traffic plan and make sure that any people hired to work for Mar-a-Lago to help control traffic are aware of and abide by the management plan.

Palm Beach police, the Secret Service, Oyer, Mar-a-Lago security and Zeidman worked together to discuss the traffic management plan and develop what changes needed to be made to update the 25-year-old document, said Police Chief Nicholas Caristo.

More: Palm Beach Town Council cites traffic as it threatens to limit events at Mar-a-Lago

They have continued to make adjustments based on incidents and issues that have arisen throughout the season, he said.

"I think we have a solid plan put in place that will minimize traffic," he said of the version presented March 12.

Among the changes that already took effect: Only northbound traffic can enter the estate.

The club also can use temporary signs to help direct visitors who may be confused about where to park or are unfamiliar with the area.

And while Mar-a-Lago can have special events in the evenings, it cannot have any that begin between 3 and 5:30 p.m. every day except Friday, when that window closes at 5 p.m. instead of 5:30, Caristo said.

If the parking lot at the Bath and Tennis Club is not available to use, then Mar-a-Lago will have to hire shuttle buses to move some of the guests between another parking lot and the club, Caristo said.

Mar-a-Lago used shuttle buses recently to great success, Oyer said. Guests of a March 10, 700-person event at the club parked at the West Palm Beach Airport Hilton on Belvedere Road, he said. There, Secret Service agents screened the guests before they boarded shuttle buses that had law enforcement officers on each one, Oyer said.

"It works beautifully," he said of the shuttle system.

The last minute changes were made at Caristo's request, after the chief assessed some of the issues surrounding traffic at recent Mar-a-Lago events, Oyer said.

Caristo noticed that when off-duty Palm Beach County sheriff's deputies direct traffic at Mar-a-Lago, they turn on the overhead lights on their vehicles. This forces passing motorists to, per state law, either move over or slow down — the latter of which is the only option because there is no room to move over, Oyer said, adding that "that bottlenecks traffic."

Oyer's team also adjusted the size ranges so that smaller events now are subject to more stringent rules under the traffic management plan. "We've learned from experience, medium-sized events can cause issues," he said.

Council members supported making Mar-a-Lago's security director the point person responsible for implementing the plan.

Councilman Ted Cooney said he notices a measurable difference in how traffic flows for Mar-a-Lago events when the club hires Palm Beach police officers rather than PBSO deputies. "They don't seem to be engaged in helping traffic flow," Cooney said. "I'm happier when our officers who know our town and know our demands are there, because it's always going to be a better product. An overtime PBSO person may not be terribly invested in that."

He said he hopes the communication surrounding traffic at the club can stay strong.

Most of the issues this season with traffic congestion around Mar-a-Lago during events was caused by a breakdown in communication, Oyer said. "It was not Mar-a-Lago saying, 'This is not in effect yet, so I'm not going to follow the spirit and intent of it,'" he said of the management plan.

The plan is solid, but somebody has to be held accountable, Town Manager Kirk Blouin said. Mar-a-Lago's staff must follow the plan, he said.

"Otherwise, this good plan is useless," Blouin said.

Press conference traffic

The team working on the traffic management plan got dealt a wild card over the past 60 days as the former president became the presumptive Republican nominee for the White House, Oyer said.

Since the plan was last discussed in December, dozens and sometimes hundreds of members of the media might descend on Mar-a-Lago unannounced, he said.

"We now have last-minute press conferences, things that this document does not contemplate," he said.

A press conference held by Trump on Super Tuesday led to traffic issues in the area, Oyer said, noting that an event like that falls "outside the four corners of this document."

As a result, language was added to the traffic management plan that says all parties will work together to minimize traffic disruptions to the public while continuing to allow Mar-a-Lago to continue using its club for permitted purposes while still providing Secret Service protection to Trump and his family, Oyer said.

Cooney said he took a little issue with saying that Trump as the presumptive nominee was a wild card. "I've been fearing just the traffic impacts," he said.

While Cooney said he hopes the town and Mar-a-Lago can move forward in good faith using the traffic plan, he continues to hear frustrations from residents.

"I'm not certain that a property in a residential neighborhood is best used for campaign purposes and press conferences, particularly when it's a private group use, which in our code is specifically designated as low-intensity uses," Cooney said. "This is no longer feeling like a low-intensity use."

'Tar and feather Mar-a-Lago'

While Caristo, Oyer and the council thanked each other for their hours put in to develop the plan, Oyer did raise an issue from past meetings.

"I also would like public acknowledgement that while it is easy to label, tar and feather Mar-a-Lago, we are not the cause of all of your South End traffic problems," Oyer said. "It is a perfect storm of bridge construction, bridge is going up, construction projects, tunnel projects, increased tourism, increased people moving here, you know the story."

He pointed to a discussion earlier in the meeting about traffic issues elsewhere on the island, where tens of thousands of cars are clogging the roads just east of the Flagler Memorial Bridge on Royal Poinciana Way.

"We are trying to be part of the solution, and we are, and that is reflected in this document," Oyer said.

The traffic management plan in its current form protects the town, Zeidman said, thanking Caristo and Oyer for their work to make the last-minute changes requested by the chief.

Responding to Oyer's comment about a public acknowledgement in reference to comments she made about Mar-a-Lago in November, Zeidman said, "As far as public apology for what I said, that, 'Mar-a-Lago, you better get yourselves under control or we'll get things under control for you,' I'm not really sorry about that, so I'm not going to apologize."

Her comments at the November council meeting followed a road-clogging Oct. 26 event at Mar-a-Lago, where traffic was so backed up that a Safeguard Palm Beach South End Safety Forum was delayed by 30 minutes. That forum was at the South Fire Station, which is south of Mar-a-Lago on South Ocean Boulevard.

"But I do acknowledge, Harvey, that I think there has been a very good working relationship between the Secret Service, between the police department and me representing the council since that time, and I think you've been a very effective mediator in that, so I want to thank you," Zeidman said.

"What I said that day in November was because this had a very bad effect on our residents here, and it did need to get straightened out," she added. "I'm sorry I had to say that, but I think we have worked it out very well, and I thank you for being so willing."

Kristina Webb is a reporter for Palm Beach Daily News, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach her at kwebb@pbdailynews.com. Subscribe today to support our journalism.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Daily News: Mar-a-Lago traffic plan would limit event timing at Trump's club