IS WOODFIELD COUNTRY CLUB VIOLATING FLORIDA STATUTE AND ITS OWN PERMIT?
Neither Palm Beach County nor the City of Boca Raton could immediately point to permits that authorize Woodfield Country Club to place its private security force on the public Clint Moore Road. Florida Statute 316.2045 states: “A person may not willfully obstruct the free, convenient, and normal use of a public street, highway, or road by: 1. Impeding, hindering, stifling, retarding, or restraining traffic or passage thereon; 2. Standing on or remaining in the street, highway, or road…”
The Woodfield security cars seem to be doing exactly what the statute prohibits: slowing traffic and blocking turns on Clint Moore Road between Florida’s Turnpike and just west of Jog Road. The Woodfield permit, obtained by BocaNewsNow.com, appears to require all traffic-interfering work to stop by 3 p.m. However, the security cars remain positioned on Clint Moore 24/7, and construction crews have been seen working as late as 5 p.m. during the week. Here is a key section from the permit:
We reached out to Becker Poliakoff attorney Jonathan Zim for clarification. He’s the attorney who sent us three copies of a “cease and desist” letter Thursday after we joked that we would publish the names, addresses, and phone numbers of everyone in Woodfield so frustrated motorists could complain to their friends in the community. We asked Zim, who claims to represent the Woodfield HOA, for a copy of any permit related to traffic control that was given to the community. He had not responded to our Friday request as of 5 p.m. Saturday. He did not explain why Woodfield’s security guards, who have no law enforcement or traffic control authority on a public road in Florida, are sitting on a public road in Florida. By not responding, Zim also didn’t provide clarity as to whether he or anyone at Becker Poliakoff provided Woodfield with a legal opinion stating that it’s okay.
Woodfield Country Club has been cutting down trees and installing an eight-foot wall along Clint Moore Road for weeks. BocaNewsNow.com just obtained information provided by Woodfield leadership to municipal officials explaining why they feel an “eight-foot wall” is needed. We’ll share that in our next report…