Pittsburgh approves limited deer hunting program in city parks

Limited archery hunting will be permitted in two Pittsburgh parks this year.

City Council on Wednesday approved legislation that will clear the way for limited deer hunting to address a deer population that officials have said has grown too large.

Mayor Ed Gainey’s administration will host a pilot program in partnership with the U.S. Department of Agriculture that will allow no more than 30 hunters to hunt in the city’s Frick and Riverview parks on one or more designated hunting days this fall.

Parks will be closed during the hunting program, and hunters will need to abide by various requirements, including a qualifications test, a background check and a rule that their first kill must be a deer without antlers whose meat will be donated to a local food bank.

Interested hunters can apply online. Hunters must be Allegheny County residents, and priority will be given to Pittsburghers.

Lisa Frank, the city’s chief operating and administrative officer, said the goal is to launch a larger citywide deer management effort next year, using information garnered through this year’s pilot program.

Councilman Bruce Kraus, D-South Side, was the only council member to vote against the measure Wednesday.

“This just seems like such a violent way to do it, and that’s where my reservations come from,” he said ahead of a preliminary vote last week. “My constitution and my makeup, I am not able to do this.”

Council President Theresa Kail-Smith, D-West End, was not present for Wednesday’s vote.

Some residents voiced support for the program ahead of the final vote, pointing out that larger deer populations can increase the risk of dangerous collisions with cars. The deer also are eating up native plants and struggling to find sustainable food sources, residents and experts have said.

“I know that the current deer population is unstable, and it will only get worse,” said North Oakland’s Kate St. John, who has been a nature blogger for about 15 years. “There’s less food in the parks, so they’ve moved to the neighborhoods. There’s poor nutrition. They’re so hungry I’ve seen them browse poisonous plants in Schenley Park.”

According to the USDA, Pittsburgh’s regional parks have about 51 deer per square mile. A more appropriate number of deer for such an area would be about 10 per square mile.

Related:

• Opinions mixed on allowing limited hunting in some Pittsburgh parks to control deer population

• Pittsburgh looking to allow limited deer hunting in some city parks