Trump's neighbors don't want him to live in Mar-a-Lago: 'Don't need proud boys, skinheads and Neo-Nazi crazies'
Disgruntled neighbors of President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate have intensified their efforts to stop him from living there, saying they fear his presence will attract "proud boys, skinheads [and] Neo-Nazi crazies" to the coveted area. According to a report by The Palm Beach Post, Palm Beach Mayor Gail Coniglio received a letter on Thursday, December 17 expressing concerns about Trump's plans to permanently move to the lavish property after he leaves the White House on January 20.
"Neighbors of Mar-a-Lago have a message for the outgoing commander in chief: We don't want you to be our neighbor and break our laws," wrote a group referring to itself as The Palm Beach Committee. "When Mr. Trump vacates D.C. the majority of town residents and your constituents do not want Trump to erect a new home or take permanent residence at Mar-a-Lago Social Club."
According to the letter, Trump lost the right to live at Mar-a-Lago when he entered into a "use agreement" with the Town of Palm Beach in 1993. The group also admitted they did not want Trump supporters flooding the neighborhood. "Trump is not above the law where he can flip-flop the town charter, laws and signed agreements to suit his personal whim," they wrote. "We do not (want) Proud Boys, Skin Heads, Neo-Nazi Crazies visiting Trump proposed new PB residence. We hope you agree!"
This comes after a number of Trump neighbors at the Florida estate launched legal efforts to stop him from permanently moving there. On Tuesday, December 15, a letter was sent by an attorney for the DeMoss family to authorities in Palm Beach and the US Secret Service, citing the same 1993 agreement that allegedly meant Trump had lost his legal right to permanently live there. The family claimed the former real estate mogul signed away his rights to live at Mar-a-Lago after he turned the private residence into a private club.
The DeMoss family, who made their fortune by selling life insurance and later taking up evangelical philanthropy, lives at a lavish property directly north of Mar-a-Lago. According to The Sun, the family has openly expressed their dislike of Trump. Mark DeMoss reportedly resigned from the board of trustees at Liberty University after its leader endorsed the New York builder for president. Meanwhile, his sister Elizabeth has expressed opposition towards Trump's purported plan to build a dock at Mar-a-Lago.
The passionate letter urges the town to inform Trump he can not live there full time and thereby "avoid an embarrassing situation" for the president. Trump allegedly signed the "use agreement" after turning the residence into a social club. According to the report, the deal does not allow any of the club members from staying in the club's guest suites longer than seven consecutive days or spending more than 21 days a year at the property.
Furthermore, Trump also agreed to ensure that there were no more than 500 members at a time and that more than half of them either lived or worked in Palm Beach. The town council, at the time, was reportedly assured that Trump wouldn't live in Mar-a-Lago, a sprawling 118 room mansion built in the 1920s that he purchased for $7 million in 1985. About a decade later, he converted the home into a private club. In 2019, the club brought in $21.4 million in revenue.
"There’s absolutely no legal theory under which he can use that property as both a residence and a club," Glenn Zeitz, an attorney and palm beach resident backing the local resistance to Trump's relocation, told The Washington Post. "Basically he’s playing a dead hand. He’s not going to intimidate or bluff people because we’re going to be there."