Deer management plan to be debated June 17

Qualified park rangers and police officers from local law enforcement agencies will become sharpshooters and their targets will be the deer at Shawnee Mission Park if staff recommendations are approved by the Johnson County Park and Recreation District Board of Commissioners.

The two-page recommendation, which includes hiring a biologist, two deer harvesting sessions by sharpshooters, and follow-up non-lethal proposals to control future deer populations will be presented to the park board during its regular monthly meeting at 7 p.m. Wednesday, June 17 in the gymnasium of the Lenexa National Guard Armory, 18200 W. 87^th Street Parkway.

The facility is just east of the 3&2 baseball complex.

As part of the board's review of staff's proposals, members of the public will have an opportunity to address the board and share their thoughts regarding the recommendations.

A copy of the recommendations is posted on the Resource Management page of the District's Web site at www.jcprd.com. 

Members of the public unable to attend and participate in the meeting may share their comments with the board by emailing them to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or by sending them to:  JCPRD Board, 7900 Renner Road, Shawnee Mission, KS 66219. 

To assist in the board's consideration of this issue, comments should be sent no later than Monday, June 15.

It is the unanimous decision of the JCPRD's eight-member staff management team that the initial herd reduction be done by lethal means. Comprising the management team is Michael Meadors, director of Parks and Recreation; Bill Maasen, superintendent of Parks and Golf Courses; Mike Ray, superintendent of Park Safety and interpretation; Grant Evans, Chief of Park Police; Terry Anderson, Park Police Captain; Billlie Thompson Park Police Community Relations Manager; and Randy Knight, Community Relations Manager.

In the recommendations, the initial harvest would take place in mid- to late-fall of this year. The sharpshooters will undergo training and management by harvesting experts. The harvest would be limited to controlled, baited sites that would be developed in advance of the event in order to establish a feeding pattern for the deer.

The harvested meat would be processed so that it would benefit the homeless and/or needy within the Johnson County community.

By early November, a follow-up survey will be done to determine the success of the harvest. If the deer population remains above of Shawnee Mission Park's capacity of 50 deer per square mile, another controlled harvest would take place in November, December, and January of 2010 for specially certified archers. That harvest would be jointly managed by JCPRD police and officials with the Kansas Department of Wildife and Parks and in cooperation with the city of Lenexa.

As the deer population is monitored, a similar process could take place in the fall of 2010 if needed.

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