St. Charles plans no change to deer policy

St. Charles officials plan no changes to the city's policy on handling the nuisance of the local deer population.

Police Chief James Keegan and City Administrator Mark Koenen researched deer management in response to a complaint from a resident who lives in the Timbers subdivision northwest of the corner of routes 64 and 31. Molly Zacker spoke at the Dec. 7 city council meeting about the damage to her yard caused by deer and the driving hazards created as they cross the nearby streets.

Keegan told aldermen at Monday's government operations committee meeting that between 2018 and 2020, police responded to about 1,000 annual vehicle accidents, with five or fewer each year caused by deer. However, he noted that all three 2020 accidents involving deer occurred in the Route 31 corridor mentioned by Zacker.

One response Keegan requested the aldermen not pursue was ending the city's ban on hunting. Keegan said he doesn't want officers diverted to the issues that may arise because of gun or bowhunting incidents.

"One of the things that I'm concerned about as the police chief is obviously the calls that we would get in a densely-populated suburb of either people being armed or folks hearing shots fired," Keegan said. "That would put our officers in a very precarious position."

With such a consistently low number of incidents, the aldermen agreed no action is necessary. More resources for residents to safely deal with deer may be provided in addition to a referral for advice from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and the Kane County Forest Preserve District.

"I'm not in favor of allowing archery or shooting in St. Charles proper," said Ward 1 Alderman Ron Silkaitis.