8/19/10

CNN's Headline News covers Cayuga Heights' deer-killing plan

8/9/10

Important hearing on fences tonight!

An important hearing on the fencing issue is happening tonight in Cayuga Heights. Please urge the trustees to PERMANENTLY amend the village fencing ordinance to allow all residents to construct tasteful deer fences. The current proposed amendment, for which the public hearing is being held, only allows deer fences for the next 5 years, and includes limitations that would prevent many people who want to from erecting fences by creating unnecessary barriers for those with smaller properties and odd shaped lots. The amendment as written is cynical, as the idea is to temporarily assuage the anger of people who are frustrated about being forbidden to put up a fence, but by making the modification of the fencing ordinance temporary, the concocted “need” to have a deer-killing program is maintained. What is most tragic about this course of action is that if passed as written, it sets the stage for creating two community conflicts over the next five years. First, there will be widespread conflict in the community when the trustees actually attempt to carry out their dangerous and controversial mass shooting of deer in people’s back yards. Second, five years from now, gardeners that have enjoyed the  protection of fencing will once again feel violated when they are told to take their fences down. When they are forced to do so, their now mature plantings will be made accessible, drawing in deer from neighboring municipalities, restarting the rancorous conflict all over again.

Here are some reasons that a permanent, less-restrictive amendment to the fencing ordinance is needed:

• The residents who are most frustrated with the deer will finally get the relief they are seeking
• It’s more reliable to keep deer out of gardens with fences than to slaughter a lot of deer and expect those who survive not to continue grazing in people’s yards
• Restricting access to gardens will decrease the food supply for deer, leading to a reduction in population over time
• The cost of alleviating deer-human conflicts should be borne by individuals who are unhappy with the deer, rather than by all the village tax payers, many of whom oppose having their taxes raised to fund an annual backyard deer-killing program.
• A sensible fencing ordinance will reduce the rancor within our community, allowing neighbors with diverse opinions about deer to harmoniously co-exist
• In the rest of Ithaca, deer fences are allowed and there is no controversy over the deer like there is in Cayuga Heights
  

7/20/10

The tide may be turning, thanks to you!

As the Cayuga Heights trustees slowly but steadily move their backyard deer-killing program forward, there are new signs of hope emerging that we can all find encouraging.

Letters in the Newspaper, and the Response

In the last couple weeks, there has been a spike in commentary in the local newspapers, overwhelmingly in opposition to the deer-killing plan. The writers of these letters have been respectful, rational, and resolute. Meanwhile, those in favor of killing have become more hostile and shrill. In today’s Ithaca Journal, there was a letter by Alan Mark Fletcher written in response to last week’s powerful letter from five Cornell Law Professors. While chastising the law professors for commenting on matters of wildlife biology, using the rationale that it is an area beyond their professional expertise, Mr. Fletcher goes on to opine about an area he clearly knows nothing about, cognitive ethology. He writes:

“It is both amusing and distressing to read a guest editorial (July 10) in which otherwise intelligent people speculate about the emotional trauma the surviving deer would feel if their herd-mates were killed in front of them. If deer are capable of any emotion at all, it would much more likely be a sense of relief that there would be less competition for the limited available food supply and more food for them.” Read the entire letter here

“The world has become a small place, and we are all connected, hopefully for good, but not always. The Quakers in the UK are speaking for voiceless animals, no matter where they live. A US Quaker, I support them in seeking humane considerations in all actions toward all sentient beings.”

This person’s comment echoes a trend of growing international awareness about what’s happening in Cayuga Heights. We have had a petition up on Change.org for the past 11 months. In the last couple weeks we’ve seen a huge spike in interest, with several hundred people adding their signatures, which automatically trigger emails to Mayor Supron and the two newest trustees. We now have more than 2,500 signatures on this petition from people in parts of the world as far away as New Zealand, South Africa, Argentina, India, the Russian Federation, and Kenya, just to name a few. We also have hundreds of signatures on this petition from people in our own region.

Where things are at now

The next few months will be critical in reversing the situation in Cayuga Heights. All but one of the trustees are publicly advocating for the bait-and-shoot program, and it is uncertain where Liz Karns, the one trustee who has not yet made a public statement, stands. Regardless of her position, the backyard killing program is expected to easily pass the vote. Before their vote is taken, however, the Village will need to complete New York State’s environmental review process. Next month they are expected to select a consulting firm that will complete the last bureaucratic hurdle for them, and shortly after that, the program is expected to move forward.

In the time that remains before a vote is taken, it is incumbent upon all of us to educate our friends and neighbors, and to encourage more local opposition so we can stop the violence before it begins. The letter from the law professors was clearly helpful, and encouraged others to participate. If more people were to band together and stand up before the community to stop this, a sea change is possible. We’ve seen it happen in other communities, like Rochester Hills, Michigan, where a deer-killing program was forced to stop based on overwhelming public opposition. One of the city’s council members said, “The solution has become worse than the problem.” It’s our job to convince Cayuga Heights that their “solution” to resolving deer-human conflicts is out of step with this community’s values, and to help the community become more aware that there are non-violent, effective alternatives that will help people live in harmony with our local wildlife.

Community Education is Our Best Hope

To assist people in educating their friends, neighbors and colleagues, we have created a small booklet that’s easy to read and that consolidates the complexities of this situation into an accessible format. We have found that once people are given the facts, and once they realize what’s really involved in a bait-and-shoot program, they are much more willing to consider alternatives. There is a small minority of people in this community who truly have a passion for killing these animals. Unfortunately, several of the most vocal of them sit on the Cayuga Heights Board of Trustees! We’ve found that most others who support the plan just want some relief for their gardens. When they realize there are other proven, reliable options, and that the proposed killing plan is unsafe, unsustainable, and ultimately ineffective, they are much more willing to consider a different approach. So please contact us if you would like some of these pamphlets, and we will arrange a way to get them to you.

We should all feel good about what we have accomplished thus far. For two years, we have worked together, and for two years, the killing has been delayed. Let’s be sure the Winter of 2010-11 does not mark the beginning of an annual massacre of our local wildlife, and a new era of brutality and violence in the Ithaca community. We can stop this atrocity from happening, but it’s going to take all of us working together, and getting more people involved. Please join us!

7/16/10

Five Cornell Law professors speak out, plus two new letters in the Ithaca Times

In the last week, there have been two letters to the editor and one opinion piece published in favor of a non-violent alternative to resolving the deer conflict in Cayuga Heights.

The opinion piece, published in the Ithaca Journal, was based on a letter that was presented to the Cayuga Heights trustees at their last meeting, on behalf of five professors at the Cornell Law School: Prof. Sherry Colb, Prof. Michael Dorf, Prof. Robert Hockett, Prof. Steven Shiffrin, and Prof. Laura Underkuffler. The letter detailed their opposition to the proposed bait-and-shoot program, based on its inherent cruelty to animals; the distress it will cause many people in the community who care about these animals and know many of them as individuals; the danger posed to innocent bystanders, human and non-human, both in and around Cayuga Heights; and the divisiveness and rancor that will only grow worse in our community should an annual killing program of this nature be implemented. The law professors pledged their moral support in the event of a legal challenge. Read the complete opinion piece here.

In addition to the law professors, two more citizens added their voices to the debate. In this week’s Ithaca Times, Zaira S. Chaudhry wrote:

“I, for one, cannot fathom how a committee comprised of notable, intelligent individuals could arrive at such an undeniably inhumane ‘solution.’ Perhaps to some this ‘solution’ seems to be the easiest to implement, however the easiest solution is not always the best solution. It would, indeed, be easy to implement a deer-killing program but wouldn't it be best to do what is right? The proposed deer killing program falls nothing short of genocide, and the proponents of such a program show absolute disregard for the value and preservation of life.”

Zaira ends her letter by quoting Mark Twain, who said, “The fact that man knows right from wrong proves his intellectual superiority to the other creatures; but the fact that he can do wrong proves his moral inferiority to any creatures that cannot.”  You can read her complete letter here.

And finally, our friend the dancing deer put pen to paper and, as a resident of Cayuga Heights, challenged the mayor and trustees to a public debate on the deer issue. His letter appeared in last week’s Ithaca Times, and while it’s not available online, here’s an excerpt:

“Having asked the Mayor and/or any Board members to publicly debate me on three separate occasions (twice in person at Board meetings and once in writing) which would be open to the community, cordial, and covered by local press, their response has been to ignore me every time. I can only figure they don’t want to be embarrassed by how ridiculously easily their reasons for Bait and Kill collapse into garbage when faced with some basic questions... I can already hear some of their excuses, We’ve already talked about the issue enough, we’ve explained the reasons, how long must we discuss this, etc. Oh, they’ve talked plenty, all right, but they haven’t answered most of the questions about their talk, and that’s unacceptable... In a week I’ll be moving downtown, and the Board will label me an ‘outsider’... So I once again ask Mayor Supron or any member of the Cayuga Heights Village Board to let me question them — and vice-versa if desired — in a polite, civil, public forum, before I’m an ‘outsider’ who is ignored entirely and given no say in matters pertaining to my community. Wait... ignored and given no say in matters pertaining to my community... well, hey, it’ll be just the same as when I was a Cayuga Heights resident!”

ADD YOUR VOICE TO THE DEBATE:

• The Ithaca Journal - Send to: Editor, Ithaca Journal, 123 W. State St., Ithaca, NY 14850
   or submit by email: dkubissa@gannett.com

• The Ithaca Times -Send to: Editor, Ithaca Times,109 N. Cayuga St., Ithaca, NY 14850
   or submit by email: editor@ithacatimes.com

6/12/10

Update on the deer situation

Despite the many frustrations of the past 20 months, one thing we should all take satisfaction from is that the previous mayor and two trustees — all staunch advocates of killing — chose not to run again in the Spring elections. These three individuals left office not only having failed to implement their deer killing plan, but also to even get it voted on and approved before the new trustees took office -- in large part due to the persistent efforts of many people in the community who protested their violent approach to problem solving. In fact, after two years of intense focus on the deer issue to the detriment of many other matters of public concern, all they managed to accomplish was the completion of a preliminary form required by New York State for the environmental impact review process.

Just one example of an area on which their time would have been better spent was safeguarding our public water supply. During their terms of office, it was exposed in the local press (Ithaca Times, 4/22/09) that Cayuga Heights was making money by processing 3 million gallons of natural gas drilling waste water into Cayuga Lake, the source of drinking water for thousands in our region, including their own constituents in Cayuga Heights. Following this exposé, the trustees were informed that the drilling waste water was contaminated with numerous chemicals, including the known carcinogen, hexavalent chromium. Yet, concerns over deer eating tulips and shrubbery in the unfenced yards of some influential residents seemed to trump all other concerns brought to the board over the last two years -- even a concern as significant as the potential contamination of our region’s drinking water.

Could there be a more blatant sign that something has gone terribly wrong in Cayuga Heights?

THE NEW TRUSTEES NEED TO HEAR FROM YOU! Next meeting is this Monday night.

In the aftermath of the March elections, there seems to be a new climate at public meetings in Cayuga Heights. We are hopeful that the three new trustees are going to help turn a new page for our community and bring some much needed rationality and integrity to the decision-making process, as well as a willingness to take the concerns of the diverse members of our community more seriously. The new trustees have not yet publicly committed to the backyard deer-killing plan, but they will have to make a decision on their position soon, so it’s up to us to inform them and make our voices be heard before it is too late and the annual killing ritual begins. Remember, the new trustees have not yet heard the opposing point of view on the deer killing plan expressed at their public meetings. If we don’t share it, how will they see what we saw at the Ithaca Festival parade--that the community is solidly behind a non-violent approach to resolving deer-human conflicts?

So please join us this coming Monday to hold a sign or speak out during the privilege of the floor section of the meeting of the trustees. Even if you don’t speak, just show up and lend your moral support to those who do. The public comments will happen toward the beginning of the meeting, right after a hearing on the fencing issue, so hopefully it will take no more than an hour of your time. Will you join us? All members of the public are invited to speak, not just residents of Cayuga Heights.

Monday, June 14 at 7 PM
The Village Hall, 836 Hanshaw Rd in Ithaca
(across from Community Corners, same building as Police Station) Map/Directions

We look forward to seeing you there!

6/11/10

March for Compassion a Success!

Many thanks to the committed citizens who turned out for the Ithaca Festival parade last week to join our March for Compassion! About 20 people of all ages carried signs and banners while our friend, the dancing deer, entertained the crowd with his humorous antics. Luckily, the rain held off and thousands of people showed up to watch the procession. We were thrilled to see many in the crowd cheering as we walked by, giving the thumbs up and eagerly accepting the informational pamphlets we were handing out -- proof that there is plenty of support in our community for an alternative to killing deer in Cayuga Heights.

Many thanks to Scott Teel (the dancing deer) for taking the initiative to make this March for Compassion happen, and for being willing to dress up in a hair suit on a hot, muggy day to help get the point across!

5/27/10

Demonizing Dissent in Cayuga Heights?

This week’s Ithaca Times published a letter by CayugaDeer.org’s spokesperson, James LaVeck. Here is an excerpt:

In last week's Ithaca Journal, it was reported that the Cayuga Heights police had received special Homeland Security training for "managing civil actions and threat incidents" in anticipation of implementing the village's controversial deer killing program. Wow. Homeland Security training for village police. Last year, Cayuga Heights' mayor Jim Gilmore attempted to ban public comment on the deer issue at village meetings, but this year, newly elected mayor Kate Supron is taking things to a whole new level.

To get a sense of the irony, let's take a brief inventory of the kind of people who have stepped forward to voice opposition to the deer-killing program: Three professors from the Cornell Law School; an internationally-known film producer and science educator; a trustee of a foundation that has made significant donations to local educational institutions, including our public library; a department head at Cornell; a professor of film studies; a professor of history; a professor at the hotel school; a retired county legislator; a journalist; a wildlife photographer; a wildlife rehabilitator; a food pantry administrator; several small business owners and restaurateurs; a couple of lawyers; a therapist; an architect; a museum curator; a handful of artists and writers; a few college students; and numerous parents with their young children.

And have any of these individuals done anything beyond participating in the democratic process in a civil and orderly manner? Have any broken laws or in any way threatened the peace? Not even one of them.

Let's think for a minute what connecting the deer issue with Homeland Security accomplishes for Mayor Supron, who cut her teeth in local politics by chairing the committee that devised this controversial plan. First, it implies that those who oppose baiting and shooting deer in the village may be dangerous individuals who need to be "handled" using special federal government techniques. Second, it has a chilling effect on the participation of local citizens in the democratic process, as even the most politically-active among us have little desire to get entangled with a police department newly fired up by learning the latest methods of controlling dissent.

You can read the rest of the letter here. And if you share our concern that Mayor Supron’s approach is damaging our community, please forward this information to others, and also contact the mayor and trustees.

Get informed and get involved: The next meeting of the Cayuga Heights board of trustees is Monday, June 14th at 7 PM at the Village Hall, 836 Hanshaw Road in Ithaca.

5/21/10

Syracuse Channel 3 News brings balance to deer debate

Yesterday, Channel 3 News in Syracuse aired a story on the Cayuga Heights deer controversy by investigative reporter Jim Kenyon. We were happy to see some rare balance in the coverage, which has been sorely lacking in many local news stories. Mr. Kenyon also provided an accurate representation of what’s driving this issue, frustrated gardeners and a lack of protective deer fencing. CayugaDeer.org spokesperson James LaVeck was interviewed and quoted as saying:

“Ultimately what we have is a small group of influential residents who don’t want to put up fences to protect their gardens, and instead they want to bring in out-of-town gunmen, put down bait piles, and shoot down human-habituated deer in people’s back yards.”

They also displayed our “Shot for a Tulip” poster on the newscast, bringing the point home visually.

If you’d like to thank Jim Kenyon for his excellent reporting, emai him here.

Cayuga Heights puts politics before public safety

When the Cayuga Heights trustees prepared their Environmental Assessment Form (EAF) for their proposed deer-killing plan, this was the opportunity to seek an independent expert's advice on the dangers posed by baiting and shooting animals within this densely populated community. The police chief has gone on record saying he can't guarantee the safety of the community if a contractor is pulling the trigger. Yet the "expert" whose advice was sought on this crucial matter of public safety is the very contractor they propose to hire to do the killing. More than a conflict of interest, this is downright irresponsible.

The Ithaca Journal contacted us for our response to the village's EAF, and we have posted what we submitted to the Journal below. While they printed one sentence from this statement, their article did not include the most important detail, that an independent assessment of safety has not been sought by the village, nor do there appear to be any plans to do so. Please write to Krisy Gashler, who has been covering the Cayuga Heights situation for the Journal, and ask her to do a story on this important issue:

The recently released EAF suggests the trustees of Cayuga Heights are
putting their political agenda before the well being of the Ithaca
community. For example, they state, "The Board recognizes that discharging a
firearm in a densely populated area such as the village of Cayuga Heights
represents a potential threat to the safety of the local population." (VCH
EAF of 2/24/10: addendum to page 19, question 18) Yet, the only impacts they
have deemed significant enough for further study in their forthcoming
Environmental Impact Statement are the decrease in deer population caused by
their plan to kill all but 20-60 animals and sterilize the rest, and the
public controversy generated by this proposal, which many have criticized as
being dangerous and unethical.

What does it say about the Cayuga Heights trustees that they are willing to
spend thousands of tax payer dollars to a consultant to perform a study of
"public controversy," and not a penny to obtain expert advice on the
potential dangers of discharging deadly weapons hundreds of times near
residences and roadways? Instead, they have included in their filing to NYS
a document touting the safety of their proposed killing program prepared by
none other than White Buffalo, the very firm they are going to pay hundreds
of thousands of dollars to do the killing. It's hard to imagine a more
blatant conflict of interest, and this is just one of several examples.

To our knowledge, no killing program of this sort has ever been carried out
in a municipality this small, this densely settled, and completely
surrounded by municipalities that are also densely populated. The
oft-expressed concerns of citizens living right across the village line,
well within bullet range, are apparently not considered important enough by
the trustees of Cayuga Heights to warrant serious consideration. Instead,
the trustees devote considerable coverage in their report to justifying
their claim that shooting most of the deer in Cayuga Heights year after year
is an effort to improve habitat for wild plants and birds. They never admit
what everyone familiar with this situation knows to be true: the people
driving the killing program are doing so to protect the ornamental shrubs
and flowers of influential residents who in some cases refuse to put up
fences to protect their gardens, and in other cases are legally prohibited
from doing so under the current village ordinance.

It is hard to take the trustees’ newfound passion for the environment
seriously, when this is the same municipality that was responsible for
discharging millions of gallons of gas drilling waste water into Cayuga Lake
(Ithaca Times, 4/22/09), the source of drinking water for thousands in our area.
Then, as now, the village’s impact on the larger community wasn't fully
considered until it was too late. In their EAF, the trustees include a memo
from Police Chief Tom Boyce offering his commitment to inspect the shooting
sites. However, on 2/10/09, in another memo the trustees chose not to
include in their filing to NYS (made available to CayugaDeer.org through a
FOIL request), Chief Boyce explicitly stated that "making things safe for the
community is, to a large part, making the decision to shoot or not shoot and
if CHPD is not shooting I can not guarantee that safety." In this memo,
Chief Boyce also raises legitimate concerns about a contractor being given
authority to make decisions that affect public safety: "Another big
difference between the police department and a sub-contractor would be the
way the culling process is viewed. The police department’s view is one of
service and safety. The police department can focus on safety because we are
not profiting from the culling of deer. We would not take a marginal shot to
get one more deer because we would not care if we got any deer. A
sub-contractor on the other hand has to think about deer numbers because if
they do not produce the Village of Cayuga Heights will not contract with
them next year."

All of this becomes that much more troubling when one learns that Anthony
DeNicola, the head of White Buffalo, has been quoted in the media comparing
his killing of thousands of animals to "brushing his teeth" (USA Today, 12/19/05)
and "mowing the lawn" (Greenwich Times, 1/23/05). Is this the mentality of a
person we want pulling the trigger of a sniper rifle in our backyards?

Fences are preferable to killing - Your voices needed at Tuesday's meeting!

Three months ago, the Town of Ithaca passed an amendment to its fencing ordinance to allow extensions of fence heights (up to 8 feet along property lines), provided the extra height is made up of material that is 90% see-through. This amendment sailed through with unanimous support and no opposition.

Just over the municipal boundary in Cayuga Heights, a similar measure has been proposed by residents to the mayor and trustees, the idea being that it would allow frustrated gardeners to protect their yards, promoting peaceful co-existence between neighbors with differing sentiments about the deer, while also eliminating the dangers that would accompany an annual ritual of shooting animals in a densely populated community. To date, the current board of trustees has rejected these proposals from its residents, and instead they have stated their intention to strictly enforce the current fencing ordinance, which will mean that many people who already built fences to protect their yards from deer browsing will be ordered to tear them down.

The fact that the trustees are doing this is further angering and dividing the community, as it is artificially creating a “need” to exterminate nearly all the deer in Cayuga Heights, a course of action that is going to mire not only Cayuga Heights, but the larger community as well, in turmoil for many years to come. Concerned citizens have pointed out to the trustees that the Town of Ithaca, which simply allows residents who choose to the right to erect practical fences, doesn’t have a huge, divisive deer killing controversy. People with differing points of view peacefully co-exist with each other and with our indigenous wildlife.

Is a win-win solution for Cayuga Heights being deliberately sabotaged by the trustees due to their single-minded obsession with killing?  

Tomorrow night (Tuesday), the Village of Cayuga Heights will hold it’s regular monthly meeting at the Cayuga Heights Fire Station (not the village hall, where it’s usually held). This meeting is notable because it will offer the public a chance to comment on the Cayuga Heights fencing policy, with two hearings on the subject scheduled at the beginning of the meeting. The purpose of the hearings are to seek feedback on a proposed measure to require residents to seek permits for all fences that are put up in the village (including those that meet the current ordinance’s requirements), and on a proposed moratorium on enforcing the current fencing ordinance. There will be public comments taken before a vote on both these measures, and any member of the public may attend and participate in these public comments, not just residents of Cayuga Heights. Since the trustees will be discussing fencing, we encourage you to attend and speak out in favor of allowing frustrated gardeners in Cayuga Heights the same rights others in our community have, to erect fences that will adequately protect their yards from deer browsing. Here are the details:

Meeting of the Cayuga Heights Board of Trustees
Tuesday, Feb 16 at 7 PM
New location: Cayuga Heights Fire Station
194 Pleasant Grove Rd., Ithaca
Map: http://tinyurl.com/ydwsskc

2/3/10

Letter: Supron prefers to kill deer than be flexible about fencing

In today's Ithaca Times, Douglas Louer takes Cayuga Heights officials to task, writing:

According to the December 2009 issue of the Cayuga Heights Courier... Mayor Jim Gilmore and Deputy Mayor Dave Donner will be stepping down and not running for reelection in March. For those frustrated by, among other things, Gilmore and Donner's lack of interest in citizen input regarding alternatives to the danger and violence of their deer killing plan, this is good news.

The bad news is that it looks like Kate Supron, who was chair of the deer killing committee that advised implementing this plan in the first place, and who was appointed rather than elected to her trustee seat, is planning to run for mayor. She is an unconditionally ardent proponent of bringing gunmen into the village to shoot deer at undisclosed times, in undisclosed locations, and for an indefinite period of years.

Not only will this deer killing plan negatively impact the safety of the village, it will also negatively affect property values, the ability of villagers to sell their homes expeditiously, and the former peaceful cohesion of the village, divisive as this deer killing plan has already proven to be, pitting neighbor against neighbor. And that's not even mentioning the horror this will bring to the deer who have done nothing wrong except be deer and do what deer do. They are gentle, graceful, affectionate beings who form associations with each other as well as with us. They don't deserve to be gunned down in cold blood because three dozen or so Cayuga Heights residents don't like them.

The so-called "public" hearing on the deer plan that the Cayuga Heights trustees, who are unanimously in favor of killing the deer, held was manipulated in favor of deer killing. The wife of trustee David Donner as well as trustee Bea Szekely took names as people arrived, also asking if you lived in Cayuga Heights or not. Those giving public comments were then hand-picked, regardless of their order of arrival or place of residence, to speak. Thus, many who were in favor of alternatives to killing the deer, and who had arrived early, had to leave for various reasons before they were called on to speak, some because they were there with their children... There were also no-parking signs along all the side streets surrounding the Cayuga Heights Elementary School where the deer "public" hearing was held, thus shutting out many. Yet, when the school holds events for its own student body, there are not any no-parking signs along the side streets. Interestingly, during the course of the deer "public" hearing, the no-parking signs were removed.

Kate Supron, who consistently uses such pseudo-euphemistic terms as "remediation" and "culling" when referring to killing the deer, has already dismissed each and every alternative and opinion outside her own, and will utilize anything, however factually inaccurate, glossed over, distorted, exaggerated or special interest, to try and rationalize her plan... She wants the deer dead, she wants to bring in snipers to kill them (in violation of the village's own gun ordinance), and she has stated that maintenance (continued killing) will be necessary for an indefinite number of years. She's myopic about the fact that what she proposes will have no effect whatsoever. Unless she intends to turn Cayuga Heights into a gated community, for every deer she kills or subjects to sterilization surgery, another will come in. Once in office, regardless of the sound bites she may use to filter it otherwise while running, she will actively pursue this close-minded, one-track, ineffective course, and will use whatever behind-closed-doors methods she can get away with to make it happen. Remember, she was put into her present trustee position as an appointee rather than as someone elected by the constituency she is supposed to represent, another indication of her ethics.

She, as well as the other current trustees, also intend to more strictly enforce the fencing ordinance in Cayuga Heights, with corresponding harsher penalties for being out of compliance. Supron, the other trustees, and their three dozen or so supporters, would rather shoot the deer than be flexible about fencing.

Full text of letter

Letter to Editor: "Deer culling arrogant"

In today's Ithaca Journal, Elizabeth Root of Trumansburg writes:

So the Village of Cayuga Heights has decided to slaughter off most of its deer residents? Even though experts document the effectiveness of contraception? This is too expensive for the affluent citizens of Ithaca's wealthiest neighborhood?

The negative effect of deer on biodiversity is negligible compared with the human effect. Yet Homo sapiens is in no hurry to ameliorate the catastrophic consequences of its massive overpopulation and contribution to Earth's direst threat, global warming.

In its usual audacity, our species has declared domination over all other forms of life on Earth without blinking an eye. Now just who is going to decide when it's time to cull the human population? Let us think about this and rethink our place in Earth's ecosystem. Let us please be better stewards of Earth and of our fellow blameless species.

1/19/10

Signs for tonight's protest

Indoor Protest at Cayuga Heights Board of Trustees Meeting
Tuesday, January 19 at 7 PM
(signs will be available in lobby starting at 6:45 PM)
New location: Cayuga Heights Fire Station
194 Pleasant Grove Rd., Ithaca Map

More signs here

1/14/10

Open letter to Mayor Gilmore in Ithaca Times from Michigan deer committee member

Other solutions than deer killing

Dear Mayor Jim Gilmore,

I am writing to you as a member of the Deer Management Advisory Committee for Rochester Hills, Michigan. Rochester Hills has rolling hills, beautiful landscapes, continuous rivers, walking trails, a beautiful downtown, manicured lawns and countless parks. Rochester Hills was voted in the top 100 best cities in the country. Our own government officials have clearly stated that killing deer for gardening purposes and because of a handful of people who consistently complain about their gardens on a regular basis, was an unrealistic and unacceptable reason to kill deer. It is every homeowners responsibility to maintain their landscape. Just as one sprays their lawn with weed control or cutting their lawn. Especially, when there are countless products available on the market which can be sprayed on plants which deer are attracted to, such as liquid fence (has been proven to be 100% effective), or the scarecrow. Also, the vast selection of beautiful plant materials available which deer are not attracted to. The annuals, perennials, trees and shrubs are endless when selecting plants that do not appeal to deer. It was strictly based on reducing car/deer accidents.

Last year, the mayor and city council of Rochester Hills have appointed members to be part of this committee to review the facts on whether culling would be considered effective on reducing deer/vehicle accidents and cost effective. Our obligation to the city was to bring in experts and review all the data provided to us and make a decision based on proven facts, as opposed to unsubstantiated opinions.

Throughout this 10-month process, according to experts' advice and all of the compiled data which was presented to us, we unanimously voted and decided that culling would not be effective for reducing car/deer accidents in the city. The following methods have clearly proven to be the most effective: clearing brush along the road side, installing flashing signs with reducing speed limit during certain times of the day/year (similar to school zone areas), immunocontraception, fencing and educating the public on reducing their speed in high deer crossing areas. Immunocontraception costs $24/deer, as opposed to culling which costs $300- $500/deer. Culling is not effective due to the fact that it is extremely costly, at the taxpayers expense, it is dangerous, inhumane and must be implemented year after year after year.

The residents of our city were appalled that in a suburban/urban environment the city government would consider introducing high powered weapons. Within the last two years, it not only caused divisiveness in our community, but at the same time, residents have every intention on removing and replacing city government officials. Any solid city entity would NEVER risk the chance of an accident taking place and allowing bullets and/or arrows to be introduced in a suburban/urban environment.

Mayor, please listen to your own residents/taxpayers. You and your board of trustees have a responsibility to your constituents. You and your board of trustees have been appointed to represent and serve the people of your community. Again, it is your responsibility to listen to the public who voted you in office. I urge you not to proceed with the mass killing of deer and implement programs which are effective, non-lethal, humane and cost effective. People in suburban/urban environments throughout the country will not tolerate the use of high powered weapons in their community.

Monique Balaban
Rochester Hills, Mich.

1/13/10

Former Cayuga Heights deer committee member says Ithaca Journal article misleading

Clarifying the deer problem

The front-page Saturday article about deer was generally well-written - except that one of its headlines is misleading, since the experts in the article do not say specifically that the Heights deer are a threat to biodiversity.

As far one can tell from the article, the experts' only reference deer in general. The point is made that the understory is affected by deer. But this does not apply to the Heights situation or residential areas in general because the understory is well-groomed by landowners, not deer. It is only in the forests that the understory is affected by overpopulation. It is up to the annual hunting season to reduce deer numbers that affect this wilder terrain.

The other misleading point is the statement that deer are the biggest threat to biodiversity. The biggest threat can be easily seen by looking in the mirror.

I served on the original "deer committee" that determined through extensive village meetings and two highly responsive residential censuses that the majority of residents chose the sterilization method of control. No such census has been conducted by the current administration.

Jeff Cox
Cayuga Heights

Lyme disease myth dispelled in Ithaca Journal

The Ithaca Journal published an article over the weekend that dispelled the myth that killing deer is a practical approach to combating lyme disease. Reporter Krisy Gashler wrote:

Phillip Baker, executive director of the American Lyme Disease Foundation, said his organization has no stance on deer hunting in relation to Lyme disease. They focus instead on alternative Lyme disease control measures such as deer bait stations that passively apply tick pesticide while deer eat. Deer are most responsible for transporting ticks over long distances, but mice are more responsible for keeping Lyme disease "percolating" in a given area, Baker said. "Getting rid of mice -- as well as chipmunks -- or the ticks on mice, would do more to control Lyme disease than eliminating deer. However, that is a much more difficult task," he said by e-mail.

The fair-minded journalistic effort that went into researching the actual role the deer play in the spread of lyme disease, how the reporting of cases in our community has changed in recent years, and what the experts feel is the best approach to preventing it, was refreshing. It was therefore all the more disappointing when the article went on to present the one-sided argument that deer are more of a threat to biodiversity in New York State than global warming!

If this claim, made by Donald J. Leopold of SUNY Syracuse’s Department of Environmental and Forest Biology, is true, then why do state wildlife agencies all over the country, including New York’s DEC, artificially boost deer populations so the hunters whose license fees support these same agencies’ budgets will have enough “game” to hunt each year? And if it’s true that "No other real or perceived threat is so pervasive throughout the entire state, nor eliminates the majority, if not all, of the understory of natural communities, greatly reducing the diversity of our natural communities and the function of these communities," then why does the New York State DEC, entrusted with conserving our environment and its resources, impose bag limits on hunters so they don’t kill too many deer? Wouldn’t they be allowing hunters to kill as many deer as they were able to, if indeed the deer are posing such a dire threat to every other species in the state’s forests?

What’s even more questionable than the claim that deer pose a greater threat to biodiversity than global warming, is the application of this general statement to the specific ecosystem known as Cayuga Heights. Nearly every argument brought forth to support the killing of deer in Cayuga Heights has taken general claims about deer and applied these to Cayuga Heights, with no village-specific data or statistics to back it up. This article is no different. But even without the data, let’s just use some common sense. Can the deer do more damage to biodiversity in a 1.8 square mile area that is almost completely developed by humans, criss-crossed with asphalt roads, and artificially landscaped with non-native plants, than the humans have already done? Are the backyards of Cayuga Heights residents the pristine “natural community” Dr. Leopold is referring to, the one that is supposedly in dire need of protection from deer?

Sadly, the Journal’s fair-minded presentation of the lyme disease issue only served to give credibility to the biodiversity claims, despite the fact that the reporting on this issue was not as well researched nor presented in balance with other scientific opinions. For example, a 2008 scientific study by an Ohio University researcher showed that “a greater diversity of animals were found in areas with deer populations than were in areas with no deer activity.”:

The study, which comes at a time when many states have begun to selectively control deer populations, challenges previous research that has suggested deer populations can negatively impact forest ecosystems through eating plants that many smaller animals may depend on... Instead, researchers found that high numbers of deer may in fact be attracting a greater number of species. This may be because their waste creates a more nutrient-rich soil and as a result, areas with deer draw higher numbers of insects and other invertebrates. These insects then attract larger predators which thrive on insect lava such as salamanders, and the salamanders in turn attract even larger predators such as snakes. (Read complete article)

More people speaking out, and you can, too!

There have been some helpful letters published in the Ithaca Journal recently from people opposing Cayuga Heights’ deer-killing program:

Middle school teacher concerned about message Cayuga Heights is sending to children

Excerpt (read full letter here):

I am deeply worried about a culture that justifies eradication of deer by referring to them as "vermin" and "pests," or a threat to gardens and the aesthetics of the community (inasmuch as fencing is a remedy). This instrumental and cruel language is repeatedly used to justify "culling." Language matters - especially where children are concerned - and this language signals that something is deeply wrong.

Ithaca includes Cayuga Heights, despite the repeated reference to guest speakers as "outsiders" at the preliminary hearing on deer culling. This community is committed to non-violent and imaginative solutions, not the violent actions and language of the Wild West. If Cayuga Heights is to become a gated community, sterilized of wild life that was, after all, here first, then we all might as well be living in a soulless suburb, where wilderness and its challenges are wiped out forever. This action is a brutal harbinger, and I suspect it will eventually receive the widespread outrage that it deserves. I would consider it a duty to raise awareness of this action among children - to situate it in language that is, at least, honest.

Finally, I have witnessed this sort of "culling" in suburban areas of Canada and it was indeed the beginning of the end for communities that had achieved a kind of equilibrium with wilderness. These actions bespeak an inhumanity and lack of imagination that is appalling.

--Brad Zukovic, Ithaca

Cayuga Heights resident points to lack of evidence to support deer-killing plan

Excerpt (read full letter here):

Some villagers, willing to have animals killed for the sake of plants, have recounted fantasy-laden anecdotes that transform deer into threatening beasts or infectious vermin. Yet no one at the recent meeting provided an instance of actual aggression by deer. What's more, ticks causing Lyme disease come from many sources, including mice.

Anecdotes are no substitute for a convincing study of the problem, which the trustees have not furnished. And undisclosed killing fields would create obvious dangers, arguably greater than that of deer crossing residential roads with low speed limits.

Could it be that the idea of killing most deer, and leaving others as a kind of sterilized zoo, attests to an egocentrism in terms of which everything exists for the sake of "us" humans who may do almost anything we like with members of other species?

--Dominick LaCapra, Cayuga Heights

Cayuga Heights resident critical of process and purpose behind deer-killing plan

My first letter to the editor of the Journal in 30 years of living here is about the Village of Cayuga Heights hiring snipers to shoot deer so that residents of this affluent community don't have to buy fences to protect their tulips.

While it might be hard to imagine a more far-fetched plot line for a fiction novel, one needs only to add that the village board of trustees unanimously favors the shootings and has attempted to ban public comment on the plan at its meetings. And all for the bargain price of slightly more than a million dollars in tax increases over the next 10 years. If this is what the village will do to deer for eating tulips, what is in store for those drivers who consistently speed on Triphammer Road?

--Thom deLara, Cayuga Heights

Local therapist says Cayuga Heights deer debate has become "nutty"

Excerpt (read full letter here):

I have gone to public meetings and heard Cayuga Heights residents speak of deer as predators, and as disease-bearing, violent animals. There were eight deer/car collisions in 2008. I feel like this debate has, frankly, become nutty. People have become angry and paranoid about deer, and about people who do not wish to have deer eradicated.

We also have other animals causing destruction to yards and gardens: rabbits, squirrels, dogs, ground hogs, beavers and woodpeckers. They leave scat everywhere, too. Should we kill them also? I feel that living with animals is part of the beauty of Ithaca: of having city and country living with a rich cultural atmosphere. We are famous as a tourist attraction for our waterfalls, Finger Lakes Trails and Cayuga Lake. There are calendars and postcards that in their pictures show this and also deer grazing. Are we really trying to create an environment which annihilates deer and decimates part of our natural beauty?

Honestly, it all feels morally shameful to me.

--Charlene Temple, MSW, LSCW, Ithaca

Keep the momentum going!

With the trustees moving quickly to put their deer-killing plan into action, it’s more important than ever that people speak out now to stop this tragedy from unfolding before it begins. Once it starts, they plan to keep the program going on an annual basis, with current projections at 10 years. Princeton, New Jersey, which started with a 5-year deer-killing plan is now in its 10th year, with no end in sight.

Let’s stop this needlessly violent approach to problem-solving from becoming a way of life in our well-educated, forward-thinking community. There are proven non-violent alternatives that are safer, less expensive and won’t tear our community apart. It’s time we demanded more from public officials who are supposed to see to the long-term well-being of the whole community, not just serve the short term wishes of a vocal minority who prefer spraying bullets to spraying deer-repellants and erecting fences.

Click here for more information about where you can send your letter to the editor.

Muffling gun shots, disposing of heads and hooves - New video reveals disturbing dialogue amongst Cayuga Heights trustees

Last Tuesday night, as the trustees of Cayuga Heights advanced their deer-killing plan by beginning the state-required process of evaluating the environmental impacts, new information came to light. The trustees have now confirmed that, along with the killing taking place at undisclosed locations and times, the weapons that will be used by the killing contractors they hire will be "suppressed" rifles. Residents of Cayuga Heights and nearby neighborhoods who wish to make informed decisions about their own or their family members’ safety will be kept in the dark, and as the discharge of the deadly weapons will be nearly silent, there will be no way to know when animals are being methodically gunned down in locations that can easily be within weapons range of homes, roadways, and places of recreation and work.  

Video excerpts from one section of their dialogue on Tuesday highlights some of the gruesome details of killing, skinning, eviscerating and dismembering our local deer, only underscoring the violence involved in the trustees’ plan to snuff out the lives of most of the deer in the village, sentient animals whose natural habitat has been destroyed by development and who now have nowhere else to go.

It’s up to each one of us to continue opposing this dangerous, unnecessary, and divisive plan, and to enlist others to join our efforts to help shift this situation in a more positive direction. Solutions exist that will allow all of us to live together in peace and harmony, while providing relief for frustrated gardeners -- without harming anyone. Each of us needs to demand accountability and common sense from the government officials driving this killing program that will do great harm to our entire community for years to come.

Write to the papers, and write or call the mayor and trustees of Cayuga Heights to make them aware of what you think.

Outsiders and vermin?

A large group of people again gathered at this month’s Cayuga Heights trustees meeting to demonstrate their support for the individual deer whose lives are at stake. See photos here.

Mayor Gilmore was not present, so Deputy Mayor David Donner presided over the meeting. He called on Cayuga Heights residents to speak first, most of whom were against a deer-killing program, and all of whom spoke in support of changing the fencing ordinance to allow higher, nearly see-through deer-proof fences so residents would be empowered to protect their yards from being browsed by deer. Even though this common sense measure would go a long way toward reducing deer-human conflict in Cayuga Heights, with no cost to the taxpayers, the trustees have not shown much interest in it, and Mayor Gilmore has even stated before that once the deer-killing program gets underway, he intends to strictly enforce the existing fencing ordinance, actually ordering people to tear down current fences that are in violation of code.

After the Cayuga Heights residents had their say the meeting, Deputy Mayor Donner opened the privilege of the floor to “outsiders” -- that’s how he labled those of us who live in this community but don’t happen to be Cayuga Heights residents. As people gave their comments, he used this term again and again: “Any more comments from outsiders?” he would ask.  One of these “outsiders” is a 40-year resident of our community who came to the meeting to say she has vibrant gardens and has learned to live in harmony with the deer. Another “outsider” is a businesswoman in Ithaca who expressed strong opposition to the killing. Another “outsider” is an Ithaca mother who is concerned that a deer-killing program sends a terrible message to our community’s children. Another “outsider” asked whether there isn’t enough violence in our society already? And yet another “outsider” told the trustees they are living in a bubble if they think that Cayuga Heights’ actions don’t impact the rest of us.

As has been the case at nearly every meeting, the overwhelming majority of comments on Monday were made by people steadfastly against a deer-killing program.

Following the meeting, we asked one of the trustees if he personally would shoot a fawn. He responded that he would do so if the animal “needed” it, if the animal were “vermin.” It’s interesting to note that, historically, the label of “vermin” has been applied to certain groups of humans, and has been associated with the process of marginalization that precedes mass killing. Deep down, people know that luring these gentle animals to a bait site with food and then shooting them down en masse is unjust and violent. But by labeling them “vermin,” the individual animals are no longer the subject of moral consideration. They become mere objects to be killed, removed, sanitized away.

‘Outsiders’ and ‘vermin’

Doesn’t this really get to the heart of the issue? To at least some of the Cayuga Heights trustees, people in our community who live beyond their borders are considered “outsiders.” To those who resent, and perhaps even hate the deer for coming into their unfenced yards full of ornamental plantings, these sentient animals -- who have no other place to go because their habitat has been decimated by over-development -- are considered “vermin.” Many who have observed this situation ask if this type of language, and the violent approach to conflict resolution that comes with it, is the right direction for our community to be heading in. Clearly, there is a much better way, and we can find it together.

Important Public Hearing:
Wednesday, October 28 at 7 PM
Cayuga Heights Elementary School, 110 E. Upland Rd., Ithaca Map

On Wednesday, a public hearing will be held by the trustees to collect feedback on the latest version of their deer-killing proposal (modified to allow as few as 20 deer to be allowed to live). This will be more formal than the public comments section of the monthly meetings of the trustees, in that people’s feedback will be included in the official record, as part of the state-required environmental review process. You do not have to be a Cayuga Heights resident to participate.

Please encourage as many people as you can to show up at next week’s hearing and challenge Cayuga Heights’ ill-advised, dangerous, immoral deer-killing plan, in preference of proven, safe and inexpensive alternatives. If passed, this outrageous program will turn our neighborhoods into killing fields for many years to come.  It’s time to help our community choose a better path.

10/23/09

Photos from Monday's protest

9/26/09

Dozens of protesters and dancing deer make TV news. Trustees unmoved.

Monday's protest drew more than 25 participants, including a dancing deer! Both the Ithaca Journal and Channel 10 News covered the lively event. Sadly, despite the great turnout, the many passionate public comments, and the growing media coverage, the mayor and trustees showed no sign of interest in what the overwhelming majority of meeting attendees were trying to communicate.

Instead of listening to their constituents, and many other Ithaca residents who are outraged by their deer-killing plan, the trustees chose to take matters in a more drastic direction, reducing the numbers of deer who may be allowed to live to as low as 20 (instead of 60, as the original plan recommended), and counting the sterilized deer from a previous program in that number so they can get to the killing as soon as possible. So Cayuga Heights' "deer remediation" program is looking more and more like a deer extermination program, with the mayor and trustees hoping to annihilate all but these 20 or so deer in one year, which could happen as soon as this winter if they are not stopped.

Killing an estimated 120-180 deer in one year is a massive undertaking for a village the size of Cayuga Heights. It will require a lot of shooters and bait sites and will be a major disruption to the community. It’s also dangerous and morally reprehensible to many to have a massacre at this scale. It’s unfortunate that none of the local media coverage has given people a sense of how large-scale and intense an undertaking this is. In Rochester Hills, Michigan, for example, they had at least four police snipers shooting in a small park for four or more hours a day, and after three days, they had killed a total of 16 deer. With the target kill numbers Cayuga Heights is going for, imagine how many shooters, days and square area this will involve! After the first three days of the bait-and-shoot operation in Rochester Hills, which included a startled deer running into a roadway and causing an accident, outraged citizens overwhelmed the City Council and they had to shut the program down.

People deserve to get the full picture of what is being proposed. Why unnecessarily kill animals, stir up outrage, waste tax dollars, and create acrimony between neighbors, when all of this can be prevented by giving people a realistic sense of what they should expect from a massive wildlife killing program? One of the reasons there’s a great divide in this community over this issue is that people have different understandings of what Cayuga Heights is actually proposing. It's up to us to educate our fellow citizens and encourage them to get involved NOW, before it's too late!

The trustees will hold a special meeting to receive feedback on their latest version of their deer-killing plan on Wednesday, October 28th at 7 PM at the Cayuga Heights Elementary School, 110 East Upland Road. You do not have to be a resident of Cayuga Heights to participate. Please speak up, and encourage people in your network of family and friends to attend as well.

Please also attend the next meeting of the Village Trustees: Monday, October 19 at 7 PM at the Village Hall, 836 Hanshaw Rd., preceded by a Peaceful Protest at 6:30 PM.

9/17/09

All but 20 deer may be killed in Cayuga Heights

The latest news is that the Cayuga Heights trustees are now lowering the number of deer they will allow to live to as low as 20 (all of whom will be sterilized), and they want to speed up the killing process, killing more deer sooner than their original plan proposed.

A reliable source tells us that this is due to their wanting to save money, as they will have to hire a person each year to oversee the process, and if they can kill more deer faster, they can pay out less money to this employee over time. You may have heard that the 10-year projection was that they’d be paying $1 million for their deer-killing plan and as a result, have to raise taxes by 5%. So this is how they propose reducing costs — kill more deer more quickly and allow fewer to live, as sterilization is more expensive than killing.

Meanwhile, far cheaper non-lethal approaches to reducing human-deer conflicts exist, and are proven to be successful (learn more here). Yet, the mayor and trustees will not open their minds wide enough to save the tax payers money by trying these alternative approaches, nor have they indicated a willingness to consider changing the fencing ordinance to allow residents to adequately protect their gardens.

You can read the latest Ithaca Journal article, titled "Cayuga Heights wants to speed culling process," here.

It’s important to understand that this is essentially an extermination plan, and the massacre they are proposing — to be carried out in residents’ back yards — will be violent, bloody and a disgrace to our community.

Please join us at the next meeting of the Cayuga Heights trustees, to protest this outrageous plan!

Monday September 21st at 7PM
Village Hall, 836 Hanshaw Rd. (across from Community Corners) Map

Learn more about what you can do to help!

Mayor Gilmore makes unfounded claims about deer in media

On Wednesday, CayugaDeer.org spokesperson James LaVeck was interviewed by WSTM TV (Syracuse) to provide balance for an interview they were doing with Cayuga Heights mayor Jim Gilmore about the deer situation. The news story, which aired later that evening, reported Mayor Gilmore as saying there are up to 300 deer in Cayuga Heights.

According to the Chair of the Deer Remediation Advisory Committee herself, the last time the deer were counted was in 2006, and at that time, it was estimated that there were 147 in the village. There hasn’t been another deer count since, so nobody knows how many there are now.

With deer-vehicle accident rates having gone down substantially last year (6 reported in police records at the end of 2008, as compared to 12 reported in 2007, and 11 in 2006), it’s disingenuous for the mayor to imply that the deer population has doubled since 2006. The mayor’s exaggerated claims were only underscored by the fact that the news reporter and his camera person, despite their best attempts, had trouble finding any deer to shoot footage of. “While we were there,” remarked reporter Jim Kenyon, “we could only scare up one, which escaped our camera lens.”

Sadly, this is not the first time the mayor has offered up unfounded statements to the media in support of his efforts to portray the deer situation in Cayuga Heights as some sort of dramatic crisis. Last Fall, he was reported in The Ithacan (Ithaca College’s newspaper) as stating that deer caused 25 deer-vehicle accidents in the village in 2008. “This is a record number for us,” he told the reporter. “When you have so many deer, the chances of car accidents are greater.” Yet, as stated above, the report prepared by Cayuga Heights’ own police department indicated there were only 6 deer-vehicle collisions reported by the end of 2008, which amounts to a four-fold inflation of the data by the mayor. (You can see the source of the mayor’s statements here).

When members of the media are too busy to check facts, statements like these get passed off as truth, and viewers will never know the difference. In this case, a public policy decision with far-reaching consequences for our community hangs in the balance. It’s up to us to hold public officials accountable. Please contact Mayor Gilmore and ask him what data exist to back up his statement that there are currently up to 300 deer living in Cayuga Heights. He can be reached by email, or by phone at (607) 257-5536.

People protest, deer comment ban reversed, "draft" kill program approved

More than 20 people peacefully protested outside Marcham Hall last Monday evening, as the trustees arrived for their monthly meeting, along with members of the public who were attending.

When the meeting began, the protesters brought their signs inside and stood witness to the proceedings. The trustees acquiesced to the protesters, reversing their ban on public comments about the deer issue under the condition that Cayuga Heights residents were given priority, and that comments would go on for no longer than a total of 30 minutes. Many eloquent statements followed from people who are opposed to the killing, who again greatly outnumbered those speaking out in favor of it.

The Ithaca Journal covered the meeting and protest. You can read Krisy Gashler’s story here.

Against all reason, the trustees approved a “draft” plan to sterilize 30-60 deer and kill the rest
At this stage, having approved the draft plan, the trustees are proceeding with preparation of paperwork for an environmental impact assessment in order to fulfill New York State’s SEQR (State Environmental Quality review) requirements. The next step in this process will have the trustees issuing a form that will, among other things, reveal whether they deem that their plan will have a significant or insignificant environmental impact. If they deem it insignificant, the road will be paved for rapid approval and implementation of their plan. If they deem it significant, they will then need to prepare a full environmental impact assessment and also hold at least one public hearing to collect the community’s input on the environmental issue. Those who wish to learn more about the SEQR process can visit the SEQR pages from New York state.

Deputy Mayor Donner’s bizarre statement
Surprisingly, the only trustee who opposed approval of the draft plan was Deputy Mayor David Donner, who was the original chair of the deer committee and has from the beginning been a staunch proponent of a killing program. But it is not the killing that Mr. Donner objects to. In his strongly worded statement, he criticized the sterilization component of the plan, saying, “Horses and deer are creatures that panic. To trap and hold them for hours or days in cages or nets is inhumane. To subject them to an unnatural and unnecessary surgery is also inhumane. I ask for a swift and honorable death for the deer, just as I do for horses."

It’s interesting that Mr. Donner finds being lured to a bait site along with fellow herd members to be shot down by high-powered rifles an honorable death for any animal, not to mention a fawn or pregnant doe. He appears to confuse the idea of euthanasia — putting a terminally ill or severely injured animal out of his or her misery for reasons of compassion — with the methodical snuffing out of the lives of healthy animals who most certainly wish to live. Were Mr. Donner or anyone else to perform a mass shooting of healthy young horses in our community, it is hard to imagine anyone describing this as an honorable death, or an honorable act. His statement is emblematic of the contorted reasoning that has surrounded the Cayuga Heights deer-killing program from the start. On the positive side, perhaps Mr. Donner’s statement opens the door to much needed community dialog about the moral and ethical dimensions of wildlife killing programs.

Financial projections show the plan will cost approximately $1 million over the next 10 years
While their draft plan was approved in order for the required SEQR environmental impact review process to begin, for the first time, the trustees have begun discussing the nuts and bolts of what implementing this plan might mean. $418,000 is expected to be spent in the first three years alone. To learn more, read this Ithaca Journal article by Krisy Gashler.

As they go further into the details, the inevitable truths are being revealed: This killing plan is dangerous, divisive, expensive and absolutely unnecessary. But as we all know, it’s entirely possible for such an ill-advised course of action to become government policy. This is why the collective wisdom and moral strength of our community must come into play, to prevent this tragedy from occurring.

To pay for their deer-killing plan, Cayuga Heights may have to raise taxes of residents by 5%
It is yet to be seen if those residents keen to have the deer killed are going to be able to convince all the other residents to pick up the tab for them. In light of the news about the tax increase, we cannot help but wonder whether more people will begin to grasp the practicality of simply changing the fencing ordinance to allow those having the most conflict with deer to  protect their gardens, and of providing residents with comprehensive education and consulting on plant choices and the use of deer repellents. These techniques are already being successfully used by many residents in Cayuga Heights and the wider Ithaca community who have learned to live in harmony with the deer. Isn’t it more sensible to apply resources directly where the conflict is occurring, thereby saving the tax payers an enormous amount of money, sparing the community the acrimony and division a killing program will produce, and providing immediate relief to those most frustrated by the presence of the deer?

Learn more about the proven, cost-effective, non-violent alternatives here.

8/20/09

Change.org features Cayuga Heights deer situation

Today a blog post about the Cayuga Heights deer situation appeared on Change.org, an online hub and media network for a variety of social issues including global warming, women’s rights, gay rights, poverty in America, humanitarian relief, universal health care and animal rights, among others.

In the write up, titled “Take Action! Save the Deer of Cayuga Heights,” Animal Rights blogger Stephanie Ernst writes:

State conservation and wildlife agencies are no help in these situations because, as James astutely points out, "they have a vested interest in maintaining the view that free living animals are not individuals with a right to respect, but rather an element of a collective resource to be 'managed' and exploited for fun and profit." These agencies--including New York's Department of Environmental Conservation--don't want to see the success of violence-free, no-kill plans (and the end, for example, to payments for hunting licenses).

So with certainly no help on the way from the state, and with the mayor and trustees of Cayuga Heights refusing to listen to concerned residents, it's time for animal advocates from all communities to speak up and oppose the Cayuga Heights plan and the trustees' ban on public comment and refusal to consider humane alternatives. We need to tell them that such a violent, unwarranted substitute for a real solution is no more acceptable for the deer of Cayuga Heights than it would be for the animals in our own communities.

Read full blog posting

WENY TV: Village Board Bans Deer Discussion

Last night's WENY TV newscast led with a story about the controversial decision by Cayuga Heights' mayor and trustees to ban public comment on the deer issue at upcoming meetings. You can view video of this news story here. Here is an excerpt from their written transcript:

Mayor Jim Gilmore says the election was a referendum on the deer issue -- and people want action. He says public comment goes on too long at meetings, and the village has other issues to attend to.

"It's become redundant, it's become unproductive," said Gilmore. "We decided that's not fair to all our other constituents that want to talk about ther things going on in this village."

"I think if things aren't getting done, that's a comment on the administration, not on the public coming and speaking for less than hour at a public meeting," said James Laveck of cayugadeer.org, a group that's against the remediation plan.

Laveck thinks banning public comments on the issue is a violation of democracy.

"I think that part of being a public servant and an elected official is to listen to what the public has to say," said Laveck.

It’s important to remember that Cayuga Heights’ deer-killing plan was only released in July, and since then, there has only been one opportunity for the public to address the Mayor and trustees about the proposal. 28 people respectfully gave comments over the course of 51 minutes at the July trustees meeting. 19 people opposed the killing of deer, 2 advocated for bow hunting over bait-and-shoot, and 7 supported the village’s deer-killing plan. Apparently, the Gilmore administration feels that 51 minutes of their time is too much to ask for the public to be able to comment on a proposal that will, for the next 5-10 years, bring armed men into our neighborhoods to bait and shoot animals in people’s back yards.

What you can do

Media reports on Cayuga Heights' controversial banning of deer comments

Ted Fioraliso interviews Cayuga Heights resident Mary Tabacchi for WENY News.

Our local media has been busy covering the controversial decision by the Cayuga Heights mayor and trustees to ban public comment about the deer issue during the very timeframe in which the trustees will be voting to implement their dangerous and unethical bait-and-shoot deer killing program.

Tonight at 6 PM there will be a news story on Elmira’s WENY, channel 19. CayugaDeer.org’s James LaVeck was interviewed, along with Cayuga Heights resident Mary Tabacchi and Mayor Jim Gilmore.

Today’s Ithaca Journal published a story titled "Enough! Board bans deer discussion." Here is an excerpt:

Villager Mary Tabacchi, who opposes culling, said she thinks the board's decision is "undemocratic."

"There have been a lot of comments pro and con, letters pro and con, but most of those were before the specific proposal came forward," she said. "So it takes a couple hours out of a month to hear people express their feelings on a topic that is divisive. The people who are anxious - pro and con - when you pull out that ability to express it, I just think you're asking for trouble."

And this week’s Ithaca Times gave Cayuga Heights a “thumbs down,” saying:

Last month’s meeting of the Cayuga Heights village trustees saw a remarkable turnout of concerned citizens demonstrating opposition and resistance to the village’s proposed bait-and-shoot plan to mitigate its sizable deer population. Over the next two months, the board of trustees is expected to approve a plan that entails annually sending armed men into the neighborhoods to discharge weapons at undisclosed locations and times. It’s a plan that has people up in arms. But at their meeting on Monday, Mayor Jim Gilmore and the Cayuga Heights board of trustees voted unanimously to forbid local residents from making public comments on the deer issue for the next 60 days. That’s a big thumbs down right there, not only because it’s completely undemocratic — even though they do technically have the right to do it — but also because people are obviously upset. Tsk, tsk.

8/11/09

Cayuga Heights bans public comment on deer issue

At last month's meeting of the Cayuga Heights board of trustees, more people than ever before showed up to protest the shooting of deer in our community’s neighborhoods.

And what was the Gilmore administration’s response to this public outpouring of concern?

At yesterday’s noon-time meeting, MAYOR GILMORE AND ALL SIX CAYUGA HEIGHTS TRUSTEES VOTED UNANIMOUSLY TO FORBID LOCAL CITIZENS FROM MAKING PUBLIC COMMENTS ON THE DEER ISSUE for the next 60 days during the privilege of the floor portion of their August and September meetings.

We are not making this up. In other words, the citizens of this community will not be allowed to publicly address these “public servants” at the very meetings where they are expected to approve a plan that entails annually sending armed men into our neighborhoods to discharge deadly weapons at locations and times they have repeatedly stated will never be disclosed.

Having lost the argument based on facts, logic and ethics, it appears all that Mayor Gilmore and the trustees have left is the arbitrary exercise of power. Apparently, they are so determined to exterminate the wildlife of our community that they are willing to kill the democratic process as a means to an end.

Trustee Bea Szekely has been advocating that the village kill all but 30 deer. Let her know what you think.

As the video tape record will show, for nearly a year, members of the public who have spoken out against Cayuga Heights’ dangerous and unethical plan have done so with civility and respect, patiently adhering to all the rules and protocols set forth by the board of trustees. And now, our voice has been arbitrarily cut off.

This outrageous disrespect of our community and its traditions should not stand unchallenged. It’s up to each one of us to respond to this silencing of dissent. Without the public demanding accountability when those in office have abused their power, our democracy becomes meaningless.

There has never been a more important time to become involved and help preserve the values that define our community. Voltaire once wrote, “So long as the people do not care to exercise their freedom, those who wish to tyrannize will do so.”

Write to the papers, and write or call the mayor and trustees of Cayuga Heights to make them aware of what you think. Contact information can be found here.

This web site is published by CayugaDeer.org - Ithacans for Safe, Ethical, and Rational Approaches to Reducing Deer-Human Conflict. We are a group of concerned citizens from Ithaca neighborhoods, including Cayuga Heights. If you would like to join our educational outreach effort and be informed of opportunities where your input can make a difference, contact us.