Too Many Deer – East Lansing Might Bring in the Sharpshooters
East Lansing has too many deer and the problem's getting worse. Since 2011, East Lansing has been struggling with what to do about this problem. This week, East Lansing's City Council met again to talk about it. And now, they might be getting serious.
After trying non-lethal means such as prohibiting residents from feeding deer in 2014, a Michigan DNR proposal in 2015 to cull the deer with sharpshooters was put on hold after "resident feedback".
According to the Lansing State Journal, East Lansing's City Council met last night (1/14/20) and now plan to take the issue to the people. It appears they'll approve a ballot question that would ask voters whether the city should partner with the USDA to conduct an annual deer cull program using professional sharpshooters. The vote would be in August and if the "advisory vote" shows there's approval for it, the culling would take place in January. Most of the Councilmembers were at least in favor of the public ballot question. Councilmember Mark Meadows is in full favor of the cull. Mayor Ruth Beier? She says she would never vote for a cull.
Possibly the most interesting piece of information to come out of this story is the fact that East Lansing has partnered with MSU to place trail cams in seven city parks as part of an effort to better understand how many deer are in East Lansing.
So, you know those times you thought you were having a private, romantic moment in one of East Lansing's parks? Don't forget to smile next time.