IN BRIEF : Bears’ McMahon Wins, Gets Fence

Chicago Bears quarterback Jim McMahon likes to shield his eyes with his trademark sunglasses, but when he tried to hide his family from gawkers he got sacked by his neighbors in this posh Chicago suburb.

After much difficulty, McMahon finally got permission from the local zoning board to fence in parts of his two-acre wooded lot.

McMahon’s problems started in September when McMahon, his wife, Nancy, and their three children moved into their new $2.2-million English manor-style mansion in an exclusive neighborhood.

But the punk-haired quarterback soon found that his castle was being blitzed by hordes of curiosity seekers. Some fans would drive up the curved driveway and get out to take pictures; others would come to the front door seeking his autograph.

McMahon decided to unleash his own potent offense.

He wanted to encircle the lot with a 6-foot fence, but that violated zoning ordinances in the village of Northbrook.

He appealed directly to the village’s zoning board, but his neighbors objected.

“We all recognize Mr. McMahon’s high visibility causes him a problem, but it has also created a visibility problem for all of his neighbors,” wrote A. C. Buehler Jr., president of the local neighborhood association.

McMahon demanded a zoning board of appeals hearing. He told the board that if he had his way he’d like to put up barbed wire and set out land mines to protect his home.

But McMahon decided to be a good neighbor and dropped the request for much of the fencing in the front yard.

The chairman of the zoning board of appeals said board members were sympathetic to the McMahons’ plight, and the board voted unanimously last month to grant a variance to allow the construction of a 5-foot fence in the corner side yard and a 5-foot gate on the front driveway. A rear fence is permitted in a new zoning code passed last month.

The McMahons may want their privacy, but they did allow a local television station to tour their home for a special to show off their 12,000-square-foot house, which includes an indoor racquetball court, air hockey table, weight room, aerobics area, sauna, steam room and tanning bed.