Contruction on Taller White House Fence to Begin this Summer

Construction on Taller White House Fence to Begin this Summer

The fence around the White House will grow by five feet this summer.

  • By Sydny Shepard
  • May 28, 2019

The fence that surrounds the White House will grow by five feet this summer. The new fence will be the first time the perimeter of the grounds have been altered in almost a century. 

The fence installation is part of plans to improve the perimeter of the grounds, according to an article by The Washington Post. Crews will begin this summer on replacing the now six foot fence (which stands on top of a two-foot stone wall) with one that will be 13 feet tall. The new fence will include an 18-inch, aboveground stone base at the bottom, a 10-foot, 7-inch metal fence and a one-foot tall "anti-climb feature" at the top.

The fence has largely remained the same since the early 1900s when a six foot fence was installed on top of a stone wall that had been added when Thomas Jefferson was president. The only alteration that had been made since was the addition of spikes at the top of the fence following 9/11.

Changes will also be made to six vehicular and nine pedestrian gates around the perimeter of the White House.

The changes will cost nearly $64 million and come after several incidents of intruders attempting to scale the fence to gain entrance to the White House grounds. Just last January a 55-year-old woman attempted to jump a barrier and a Virginia man tried to get into the White House saying he wanted to help President Trump, "bring peace to the world."

About the Author

Sydny Shepard is the Executive Editor of Campus Security & Life Safety.

Featured

  • Making the Grade with Locks and Door Hardware

    Managing and maintaining locks and door hardware across a school district or university campus is a big responsibility. A building’s security needs to change over time as occupancy and use demands evolve, which can make it even more challenging. Knowing the basics of common door hardware, including locks, panic devices and door closers, can make a difference in daily operations and emergency situations. Read Now

  • Choosing the Right Solution

    Today, there is a strong shift from on-prem installations to cloud or hybrid-cloud deployments. As reported in the 2024 Genetec State of Physical Security report, 66% of end users said they will move to managing or storing more physical security in the cloud over the next two years. Read Now

  • New Report Reveals Top Security Risks for U.S. Retail Chains

    Interface Systems, a provider of security, actionable insights, and purpose-built networks for multi-location businesses, has released its 2024 State of Remote Video Monitoring in Retail Chains report. The detailed study analyzed over 2 million monitoring requests across 4,156 retail locations in the United States from September 2023 to August 2024. Read Now

  • Gaining a Competitive Edge

    Ask most companies about their future technology plans and the answers will most likely include AI. Then ask how they plan to deploy it, and that is where the responses may start to vary. Every company has unique surveillance requirements that are based on market focus, scale, scope, risk tolerance, geographic area and, of course, budget. Those factors all play a role in deciding how to configure a surveillance system, and how to effectively implement technologies like AI. Read Now

Most   Popular

Featured Cybersecurity

Webinars

New Products

  • Luma x20

    Luma x20

    Snap One has announced its popular Luma x20 family of surveillance products now offers even greater security and privacy for home and business owners across the globe by giving them full control over integrators’ system access to view live and recorded video. According to Snap One Product Manager Derek Webb, the new “customer handoff” feature provides enhanced user control after initial installation, allowing the owners to have total privacy while also making it easy to reinstate integrator access when maintenance or assistance is required. This new feature is now available to all Luma x20 users globally. “The Luma x20 family of surveillance solutions provides excellent image and audio capture, and with the new customer handoff feature, it now offers absolute privacy for camera feeds and recordings,” Webb said. “With notifications and integrator access controlled through the powerful OvrC remote system management platform, it’s easy for integrators to give their clients full control of their footage and then to get temporary access from the client for any troubleshooting needs.” 3

  • FEP GameChanger

    FEP GameChanger

    Paige Datacom Solutions Introduces Important and Innovative Cabling Products GameChanger Cable, a proven and patented solution that significantly exceeds the reach of traditional category cable will now have a FEP/FEP construction. 3

  • Camden CM-221 Series Switches

    Camden CM-221 Series Switches

    Camden Door Controls is pleased to announce that, in response to soaring customer demand, it has expanded its range of ValueWave™ no-touch switches to include a narrow (slimline) version with manual override. This override button is designed to provide additional assurance that the request to exit switch will open a door, even if the no-touch sensor fails to operate. This new slimline switch also features a heavy gauge stainless steel faceplate, a red/green illuminated light ring, and is IP65 rated, making it ideal for indoor or outdoor use as part of an automatic door or access control system. ValueWave™ no-touch switches are designed for easy installation and trouble-free service in high traffic applications. In addition to this narrow version, the CM-221 & CM-222 Series switches are available in a range of other models with single and double gang heavy-gauge stainless steel faceplates and include illuminated light rings. 3