Upper Dublin commissioners weigh options for the future
Upper Dublin Township’s Board of Commissioners took time out at its recent meeting to discuss a problem that was not planned nor listed on the agenda. The issue at hand was the number of deer in the community.
Board President and Ward 4 Commissioner Ira S. Tackel said that it was a topic he wanted to “plant the seed” about to the board during its July 9 session.
“The board did get an email today from a resident concerning the deer population,” said Tackel. “This is something that this board has dealt with for many years.”
He said that the township has taken many steps to mitigate the issue over the years. He said that they had once held “a very expensive deer shoot.” He added that, in his four decades of living in the township, this was some of the highest totals of deer he’d seen.
“I totaled a car hitting a deer myself about 10 years ago,” said Tackel. “I believe, anecdotally, that there are more deer in Upper Dublin today than I have ever seen in the 40 years I’ve lived here.”
He said township residents have concerns that will likely soon be before the commissioners to handle.
“They do cause a significant amount of damage to foliage, to property,” said Tackel. He said a fall deer hunt may alleviate the population, thinning it to more acceptable levels. “I would like to just plant the seed that I think this board needs to do something proactively. It may be expensive, but the problem is only getting worse day by day.”
Outside of bow hunting permitted in small windows each fall, the township’s president said that the most recent township-sponsored hunt was six to eight years ago.
“That hunting, by the way, was probably $10,000 or more,” said Tackel. “And not very successful.”
Tackel said that, if the board were to review statistics that are recorded by township police, there were more fatalities of deer by vehicular strikes than by the hunt.
Township Manager Kurt Ferguson said that he’d previously worked in communities that allowed nonprofit groups of certified bow hunters to come in and reduce the population.
“They charged the township next to nothing, and anything they hunted, they would give the venison to homeless shelters to use, and they would get 80 to 100 deer a year,” he said. “They would primarily hunt in public parks.”
People would be notified and restricted from park use, allowing hunts to run on specified days.
Upper Dublin Police Chief Francis X. Wheatley said that they have been working with the township’s Parks and Recreation Department for “10-plus years or even longer, before my time,” and been successful. The 15-year program is still conducted in the area, with annual hunts.
“These are hunters who are experienced, who go through training the township that the police department put on for them,” said Wheatley. “There are sites throughout the township, not only township property but some private property the folks sign-off on.”
He said, while these hunts are successful, it would not be the only solution.
“I don’t think it’s going to solve the problem of the growth,” said Wheatley. “I think that’s something that the board will have to address.”
Wheatley said they do get complaints when hunters are out, but that the problem is still not alleviated by hunting alone. Some residents have complained, he said, that the deer are baited to an area prior to the hunts. Wheatley said that the hunts are still held each year, but Tackel noted they yield “only a fraction of what we need to control the population.”
According to the Deer Management Program documentation, the 2023-24 deer hunting season included 48 active participants, with 51 total deer being harvested. A total of 2,349 hours were spent by hunters.
The highest yield of deer was hunted from Dublin Hunt Open Space, which totaled 15 of the 51 deer. Six were hunted from owner-approved private land hunts.
“It’s almost to the point that it is getting out of hand,” said Tackel, who noted they were often in his own yard. “They’re lovely, you know, Bambi back there, it’s great. But they really do cause a significant amount of damage.”
Tackel said that he hoped the board would come up with some potential solutions over the next several months to help reduce the problem. Wheatly said he’d forward the commissioners reports and statistics on the deer in the township.
Ward 2 Commissioner Meredith L. Ferleger said that cooperation from neighboring municipalities would also likely need to be considered, as the deer population do not abide by township lines. She said, in the past, the lack of efforts in communities surrounding Upper Dublin made prior attempts unsuccessful.
