Chaffee Crossing hunts are studied

— The continued growth of activity at Chaffee Crossing is creating more interaction between man and beast, prompting city directors to consider authorizing urban deer hunts.

The directors decided to consider amending its ordinance next week to allow for archery deer hunts on city property at Chaffee Crossing.

Fort Smith Police Chief Kevin Lindsey encouraged the directors to allow the hunts because “This will help improve the overall well-being of the deer population and the safety of our citizens.”

Ralph Meeker, assistant deer program coordinator with the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, told city directors Tuesday that growth of Arkansas cities and the growth of the state’s deer population has led tomore interaction between the species.

He pointed to statistics that showed more than 20,000 collisions between deer and vehicles in Arkansas in 2011 and 2012 that caused $70 million in damage.

Diseases like Lyme’s Disease and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever are more prevalent in areas with large white tail deer populations, he said.

He said an urban deer hunt at Chaffee Crossing would not be held so much for the health of the deer herd as for the health of the human population.

Director Pam Weber expressed opposition to the idea. She said, speaking as a mother, she was concerned about the danger of accidents where children play in the woods, the growing number of people moving into homes there and the numbers of people who use the area for recreation.

She pointed to the growing numbers of people who ride bicycles, run and walk on the trails that traversethrough the area.

Other directors said they favored the hunt to protect the safety of the people who live, work and play at Chaffee Crossing.

According to proposed changes in the ordinance, the police chief would have the power to authorize the hunts that would be sanctioned by the game and fish commission.

The hunts would be restricted to those using longbows, recurve or compound bows from deer stands at least 10 feet off the ground. Meeker said bows have a shorter range than guns and shooting from deer stands means the hunter would be shooting down toward the ground.

Hunters would have to possess a valid urban-bowhunting permit issued by the game and fish commission, wouldhave to pass the International Bowhunter Education Course, attend an urban-hunt orientation and pass a proficiency test.

Hunters would be restricted from hunting within 50 yards of homes, public trails, golf courses, parks, utility installations or paved roads, according to the proposed ordinance amendment.

The first deer must be a doe but there would otherwise be no bag limit, Meeker said, because the purpose of the hunt would be to reduce the population.

Meeker said deer hunts have been held at Chaffee Crossing in the past under an agreement with the Fort Chaffee Redevelopment Authority. Stephanie Malone, with the authority, said huntsat Chaffee Crossing have been held every year from 2006 to last year.

She said the authority voted recently not to hold another hunt because of construction at Chaffee Crossing.

Northwest Arkansas, Pages 7 on 01/09/2013

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