Cape council discusses deer hunt briefly with opponents

Mayor Harry Rediger was reluctant to let them speak, but he also seemed reluctant not to.

Five members of Cape Friends of Wildlife, a group that opposes a proposal that would allow deer hunting in Cape Girardeau's boundaries, attended the Cape Girardeau City Council's study session Monday night.

But only one was encouraged to talk.

Vivian Selby showed the council a map of Cape Girardeau on which she had plotted churches, parks, schools and densely populated areas. She suggested that shows definitively that there are few, if any, places to safely hunt within the city limits.

Selby spent several days plotting the map and had even contacted the Missouri Department of Transportation, which told her it would not allow hunting near Interstate 55 and Kingshighway, she said.

"Cape isn't a place with a lot of large lots for hunting," she told the council.

Selby was given the chance to speak, even going over the five-minute allotment the council typically gives speakers. But at the session's outset, it didn't appear anyone would be given that chance.

"I feel uncomfortable hearing anything about deer tonight," Rediger said when he noticed the group in the audience.

Rediger pointed out that the council had elected to appoint a committee to study the issue, hold a public hearing and bring back a recommendation about the best way to manage the deer population. Proponents say the growing number has led to increased accidents and ravaged landscapes, though opponents maintain no accurate count has been taken.

The discussion was held without the presence of council member John Voss, who proposed forming the seven-person citizen's committee that has seen two resignations.

Cape Friends of Wildlife, already denied a chance to speak at the recent Deer Management Committee meeting, said that they had hoped to appeal to the council with their worry that such a plan has yet to be proved necessary.

Rediger never refused anyone the right to speak outright and reiterated that it wasn't that he did not want public input. He just suggested that the process be allowed to play out and that the comments were most appropriate at the public hearing, scheduled for 6 p.m. Tuesday at the Osage Centre.

"Trust me, you will have your time," Rediger said.

Still, at least one council member did weigh in. Loretta Schneider, who noted that her husband suffered from Lyme disease before he died, suggested the opponents are jumping to conclusions that may not be accurate. Lyme disease is a bacterial infection spread through the bite of the blacklegged tick, commonly carried by deer.

"It's not about the hunt," she said. "It's about wildlife control. ... It's our job to protect the citizens of Cape Girardeau."

After the study session, Stephen Stigers, who heads the group, said he was disappointed at the council members' reaction to their attempt to speak out directly to them.

When asked about Schneider's comments regarding her husband, Stigers said, "It's just a hugely emotional argument. That doesn't make it rational."

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Pertinent address:

401 Independence St., Cape Girardeau, MO