President Donald Trump makes his return to South Florida on Tuesday, the first time he’s been to the Winter White House since April.
He’ll be spending the Thanksgiving holiday at Mar-a-Lago, his private club and estate in Palm Beach.
He still has some unfinished holiday business in Washington. Before hopping on Air Force One on Tuesday afternoon, Trump will pardon his first Thanksgiving turkey in a ceremony in the White House Rose Garden.
Forgotten what’s like when the president’s in town? Here’s a refresher of 10 things you should know about Trump and South Florida:
— Where’s he staying? Spanish for sea-to-lake, Trump’s 18-acre Mar-a-Lago estate spans from Intracoastal Waterway to the Atlantic Ocean in Palm Beach. Built in 1927 as a home for cereal heiress Marjorie Merriweather Post, the National Historic Landmark was purchased by Trump in 1985 and converted to a private club that doubles as his part-time residence. When Trump was elected, the cost of a membership to the Mar-a-Lago Club doubled to $200,000.
— How can you catch a glimpse of the president? Southern Boulevard is a popular spot to gather and watch his motorcade pass. During previous visits, Trump’s ventured to his golf club near the intersection of Summit Boulevard and Congress Avenue in West Palm Beach. His wife, Melania, toured the Morikami Gardens in West Delray with Akie Abe, the wife of the Japanese prime minister. Trump attended Easter and Christmas Eve services at the Episcopal Church of Bethesda-by-the-Sea in Palm Beach. That church is also where the president and the first lady were married, and their son, Barron, was christened.
— Where can you see Air Force One? Trump will arrive at Palm Beach International Airport on Tuesday afternoon and is expected to leave Sunday night. For all that time, the president’s plane will be parked on the tarmac, and you can catch a glimpse of Air Force One while driving by on Southern Boulevard.
— What roads should you avoid? Expect road closures when Trump is in town. A1A will be blocked in front of Mar-a-Lago. Trump has a helicopter landing pad for his presidential helicopter Marine One. So far, he’s chosen to travel to and from Mar-a-Lago by motorcade. Marine One has already been spotted at the airport this week. The aircraft typically travels with the president — both domestically and abroad. Boating restrictions will also be in place in the Intracoastal and ocean waters near Mar-a-Lago.
— What other restrictions are in place? Commercial air traffic will continue as normal, but small planes will be grounded at nearby Lantana Airport, which is only a few miles from Mar-a-Lago. Banner-towing aircraft, sightseeing planes and flight training are prohibited within a 30-mile radius of Mar-a-Lago when the president visits. In February, a sonic boom caused by military jets scrambling to enforce the restrictions rattled Broward County residents. A Palm Beach Ccounty report estimated businesses at the Lantana airport lose about $30,000 in revenue during a weekend presidential visit.
— How often will Trump be here? The White House doesn’t discuss the president’s travel plans, but based on his presidency so far, he’ll frequent Mar-a-Lago during Palm Beach’s peak season, which runs from Thanksgiving through about Easter. Since becoming president, Trump has spent 25 days at Mar-a-Lago. He made his first visit as president to attend the Red Cross Ball (it won’t be at Mar-a-Lago this year) on Feb. 4. His last visit came on Easter weekend.
— Who else could be coming? Trump has hosted world leaders in Palm Beach County. He had a golf outing with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in February. In April, he met with the Chinese President Xi Jinping at Mar-a-Lago. The Chinese leader stayed at Eau Palm Beach Resort & Spa in Manalapan. Efforts to get detailed records of Mar-a-Lago’s visitor logs have been unsuccessful. In response to a lawsuit filed by government watchdog groups, a Secret Service official said in an affidavit that “a review of records confirmed that there is no system for keeping track of presidential visitors at Mar-a-Lago, as there is at the White House.”
— What does Trump do when he’s here? The president likes to golf. He’s hit the links with the Japanese prime minister and champion golfer Ernie Els. Trump likes to go to events at his properties. He attended a Super Bowl party at his golf course near West Palm Beach. In February, Trump made headlines when he was captured on social media discussing a nuclear test by North Korea with the Japanese prime minister in the middle of a social function at Mar-a-Lago. And of course, Trump will tweet, just as he does everywhere he goes.
— How much will it cost us? Local taxpayers are footing some of the bill to protect Trump when he visits. The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office estimates that Trump’s visits to Mar-a-Lago since Election Day have cost county taxpayers about $4 million. Some relief has been provided from the federal government. Palm Beach County law enforcement agencies are getting about $1 million to offset the cost of protecting Trump when he visited as president-elect. Congress approved $41 million to reimburse state and local law enforcement agencies that incurred “extraordinary costs” protecting the president’s residences in Florida, New Jersey and New York. Palm Beach County has applied for $3.5 million.
— What about protests? A group of about 100 hit the streets of West Palm Beach to protest Trump’s policies earlier this month — even before the president’s arrival. Unlike previous visits, Bingham Island, which provides the closest accessible point to Mar-a-Lago, will be closed because of a construction project to replace the Southern Boulevard bridge.
.ss-blurb-fblike{
padding-left:10px;
}
.ss-blurb-fblike-heading {
font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;
font-weight: bold;
}
Like us on Facebook
(function(d, s, id) {
var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];
if (d.getElementById(id)) return;
js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id;
js.src = “//connect.facebook.net/en_US/sdk.js#xfbml=1&version=v2.10&appId=728754867160252”;
fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs);
}(document, ‘script’, ‘facebook-jssdk’));
