Aug. 19 (UPI) — A busy road in front of Donald Trump‘s Mar-a-Lago Club in the town of Palm Beach, Fla., will be open when the former president is not at the residence, according to an agreement.
Last month, the U.S. Secret Service ordered South Ocean Boulevard to be closed effective July 20 after the July 13 attempted assassination of Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania. Officials said the road would remain closed through at least the Nov. 5 general election.
But U.S. Secret Service, other law enforcement agencies and town officials reached an agreement late last week to reopen the road when the president is not in Palm Beach.
Town council members were expected to hear the proposal for the first time, a source told The Palm Beach Post.
Joanne O’Connor, the town’s attorney, sent a letter to the Secret Service, asking about the federal government’s authority to close the road.
On Tuesday, Town Council directed staff to look at possible legal options, including stripping the club of its ability to operate. Residents had contacted town staffers with concerns about safety and congestion.
Trump “was very opposed” to closing the road, according to a Mar-a-Lago news release.
“President Trump, the Trump family and the Mar-a-Lago Club do not want to inconvenience anyone, especially their neighbors and greater community in Palm Beach,” a Trump family spokesperson said in the news release. “The Trumps have been members of the community for 30 years; it is their home, and they share the sentiments of fellow town residents.”
Trump is planning to campaign this week in Pennsylvania, Michigan, North Carolina, Arizona, Nevada.
“The Trump family is particularly grateful for the willingness of these agencies to collaborate with them and town officials to develop a compromise that benefits everyone involved,” the release reads.
When the road is closed, the Florida Department of Transportation use a bulldozer to put concrete barricades into place to block parts of the traffic circle. Drivers are diverted from entering the roundabout and lanes are marked with orange traffic cones.
The road was only closed when Trump was at the residence while president.
On Friday, the U.S. Coast Guard Sector Miami announced new restricted “security zones” in the water near Mar-a-Lago whenever he or other protected visitors are in town. The Coast Guard and other law enforcement agencies will have boats displaying flashing blue lights around three zones, which encompass the Intracoastal Waterway and the Atlantic Ocean.
The zones will be enforced between Monday and Nov. 30.
Mar-a-Lago, which was built in 1927 and is a National Historic Landmark, includes 126 rooms and 62,500 square feet built on 17 acres. Since 1985, it has been owned by Trump.