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Winona residents in the hills and valleys have long dealt with white-tailed deer neighbors who often turn landscaping into dinner. And after a City Council vote Monday, more of those neighborhood deer may be turned into dinner themselves.
The council approved a measure which will allow archery hunting within conservancy districts in the city, an effort to help curb a booming deer population. Those conservancy acres are mostly located on steep blufflands in the southern parts of the city.
It is not the first time the city has examined the possibility; it has been brought up for discussion several times by council member Tim Breza without success. In 2007, several residents asked that the council do something to help curb the deer herd that has managed to strip their yards of most everything green save the thorny bushes.
City Public Works Director Keith Nelson told the council that the problems with deer in residential neighborhoods was not just that homes were encroaching on deer territory, but that the actual herd numbers were increasing.
For now, bow hunters will be able to hunt on the conservancy land within the city throughout the state’s archery hunting season, from September through December. The city can seek approval to have its own special hunting season from the Department of Natural Resources, which it may consider if the deer population isn’t curbed.
DNR official Gary Nelson said that his recommendation was to try out the new bow hunting on public lands in 2010 within the state’s season and see how that goes before exploring a special season.
Council member Gerry Krage voted against the measure stating he felt it wouldn’t do enough to impact the deer populations. He also asked that city staff look into what the city’s insurance carrier might have to say about allowing such hunting and allowing hunters to perch on deer stands. He said some private property owners have been warned against allowing hunters in deer stands because of the potential for falling.
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