10-14-09 Council Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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MINUTES CITY COUNCIL OCTOBER 14, 2009 taken. T'he Administrator reported that the agreement is modeled after those used in other Metro communities. There will be no cost to the City other than adding the City as an additional insured on the MBRB's liability policy, the cost of which will be $50. Blesener asked how many hunters would be involved. The Administrator was not sure, but estimated two to three. The Administrator reported that if the Council authorizes the hunt, a coordination meeting will be held with the MBRB. The site will be walked and some additional parameters could be identified. Rocky Waite, 2651 Lakeshore Avenue, asked what the City is basing its position on that there are too many deer in Little Canada. Waite indicated that the DNR indicates that 30 to 40 deer can be supporCed in a square mile. Little Canada is 4 square miles. The City Administrator pointed out that if you eliminate the freeways, lakes, and densely developed residential areas, the deer are concentrated in the City's open areas and the population is in excess of that recommended by the DNR. The Administrator reported that while the deer population in the City has not been officially counted when John Moriarty, Ramsey County Parks, did afly-over to count deer on County property, he noted that there were over 70 deer in the northeast part of the City. That population is now projected to be about 90. The Administrator noted that the majority of the Little Canada land in this area is owned by the Sculley family, and they will not allow non-family members to hunt their property. The Administrator reported that Maplewood has decided to not pursue a deer hunt this year, and revisit the possibility next year. The Administrator was not sure how far the deer travel, but indicated that it is believed that the deer are traveling throughout the City. Waite again questioned the number of deer in Little Canada. The Administrator responded that the County's aerial survey did not officially count the deer in Little Canada as the City did not pay the County to do the count. The Administrator stated that in the future the City can request to be included in the count. Waite questioned John Moriarty's comments made at earlier meetings about the increasing deer count. The Administrator indicated that the population numbers can fluctuate. He also noted that Moriarty indicated that open areas the size of Little Canada's, the deer population should be much smaller. The Administrator estimated that he has received ten phone calls expressing concern about safety given the high number of deer in the area. Waite did not feel ten complaints was a large number. T'he Administrator pointed out that when someone calls the City it is usually after they have reached a high frustration level. The Administrator indicated that the majority of the people he has talked to feel that there is a 6