New Fence to Protect Joliet Airport from Potential Crime -- and Wildlife

A fence is being built around the Joliet Regional Airport to keep the bad guys -- and the deer -- out, manager Jennifer McFarland said.

With the assistance of a federal grant that will cover 95 percent of the $380,000 expense, the fence is to be erected along all four sides of the property at Jefferson Street and Houbolt Road, McFarland said. The remaining 5 percent will be split between the state and the Joliet Park District, which oversees the Joliet-based airport.

Fence poles have already been installed, and the black vinyl-coated fence material will be put in place by April, McFarland said. The portion that sides Jefferson and Houbolt will be six feet in height and the remainder 10 feet, she said.

Although there was no one incident that prompted the decision to enclose the property, she said, the need to protect the 90 aircraft that lease space there was definitely a consideration. It's unusual for airports not to have a fence around the perimeter, she said.

Equally important, however, is the need to keep wildlife from wandering onto the two runways, one of which is asphalt and the other turf, McFarland said.

"We've had some indication that deer are coming across from the (Will County) forest preserve, and that can sometimes be a problem," she said. "Deer are just as dangerous to planes as they are to cars."

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