With the passage of ordinances for the hunting of white tailed deer earlier this year, some may wonder how the program is going. About half of the bow hunting deer season has concluded. The Ohio Deer Hunting Season for 2016-2017, for archery started on September 24 and runs through February 5, 2017, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.
Two ordinances pertaining to the hunting of white tailed deer by bow hunting in North Royalton, introduced at the May 3 City Council meeting, were unanimously adopted at the June 7 meeting. This follows the passage of the measure at the March 15 Primary, where the six communities all passed the measure, in an effort to address the deer population problem on a more regional level. In North Royalton, 6,395 voters voted for the measure and 2,968 voted against the measure. The first ordinance permits the hunting of white tailed deer by long bow or short bow during hunting season or during the rest of the year through the use of the nuisance abatement process. Either way, the hunter would need to abide by certain criteria that is set forth in the ordinance.
The bow hunting of white tailed deer program has been established in the City of North Royalton, as well as five other communities, including Strongsville, Broadview Heights, Seven Hills, Parma and Parma Heights. North Royalton seems to be leading the program by far. To date, 65 permits have been issued. According to North Royalton Police Chief John Elek, the City made the cutoff at 65, due to the constraints of manpower to issue the permits. The first permit was issued on August 16 and two other nuisance permits were granted under the Ohio Department of Natural Resources Deer Nuisance Permits. The City of Strongsville has reported that 28 permits have been issued; Broadview Heights, 21 and Seven Hills 15. The cities of Parma and Parma Heights did not respond to requests.
As of November 29, 135 deer have been tagged in North Royalton. In Strongsville, 35 have been tagged and in Broadview Heights, seven have been tagged. The City of Seven Hills does not require hunters to report their tags until the season concludes.
Elek said that the program has worked smoothly and with little incident. He said that there have been a few incidents where deer that had been shot wandered onto other property, but there have been procedures in place to handle that situation. “So far, it’s going pretty well.” Much of the activity in North Royalton has taken place in the northwestern section of the city.
Those interested in participating in the program for the 2017-18 season will be able to apply to the City after February 5 and until August 15. Those applying for a nuisance permit can do so from February 5 to the beginning of bow hunting deer season next year, according to Elek.
For information about the North Royalton program, you can visit the city’s website at www.northroyalton.org, Click on Municipal Deer Control Permit Packet – Ord. 16-83, under the Important Information section.
By GLORIA PLEVA KACIK
Contributing Writer