City begins fencing perimeter around McCormick Place for NATO summit

citizen |

Preparations for Chicagos hosting of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit continued Wednesday evening into Thursday as fencing and other security measures were put in effect around McCormick Place, the site of the two-day event.

Walls of metal fences were erected just outside of the Indiana Avenue side of McCormick Place, from 24th Street to Cermak Road. More of the barricades were put up on Prairie Avenue from Cermak Road to 21st Street. Fencing was also put up around Interstate 55 from the bridge on Michigan Avenue between 24th and 25th Streets east to King Drive. Also, the adjacent EastGate Village residential subdivision was fenced off.

Full security measures are being kept under wraps and are being handled, chiefly, by the U.S. Secret Service. But Chicagos top cop said his force is ready for the event. Security will be tight around the city through midnight Monday.

Weve been training, planning, equipping, strategizing for almost a year, said Chicago Police Supt. Garry McCarthy. Its going to be a little bit hectic but its gonna be a good event for the city.

Starting Monday of this week, parking bans were put into effect near McCormick Place where Chicago will, for the first time for any North American city outside of Washington, D.C., host the 28 member nations and 50 foreign countries in total at NATOs annual conference.

The parking restrictions expanded as the week progressed and Chicago Department of Streets and Sanitation tow trucks hovered the no-parking areas to be sure motorists complied. Signs on Interstates 55 and 94 leading near McCormick Place inform motorists that stretches of those roadways will be closed Saturday through Monday.

By Wednesday evening, businesses within a four-block radius of McCormick Place began to take their own precautions to secure their respective businesses. A state-owned building at Cullerton Street and Michigan Avenue was among the many buildings boarded up in anticipation of the throngs of protesters expected in the area starting Saturday. Workers could be seen Thursday morning in the area boarding up entry doors, windows and other fragile parts of edifices.

While some area business have not decided whether or not they will remain open throughout the summit, many are expected to be closed --- either because they are closed on weekends anyway or due to the summit and the thousands of protesters it is expected to draw.

The mayor and McCarthy have appeared on television news and other local shows explaining that the city is prepared to deal with expected and unexpected situations. McCarthy said Thursday morning on a local talk show that he could not disclose police tactics but that his department, with help from suburban departments and ones from such cities as Milwaukee, is trained and ready.

Were going to facilitate and protect peoples first amendment right to free speech while at the same time providing for the public safety, said McCarthy on the Windy City Live talk show.

President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama are scheduled to arrive in Chicago their hometown Saturday evening. The president will address the NATO summit leaders Sunday, the official opening day of the conference. Foreign delegations began arriving in Chicago Thursday, though many of their advance teams have been in the city for days already.

Several NATO-related protests are expected. The city required some demonstrators to secure a permit to protest and three organizations did. Still, busloads of demonstrators including those in the Occupy Movement from around the country began arriving in the city this week.

NATO is an organization that started during the Cold War Era as a military alliance. The organizations members include the United States, Albania, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Turkey, and the United Kingdom.

By Rhonda Gillespie

Latest Stories

Latest Podcast

STARR Community Services International, Inc.