Deer Hunt Addressed Again In Berkeley Senior Communities

BERKELEY, NJ — Residents of Berkeley's senior communities continue to voice concerns about a "deer hunt" in their communities.

The rumors say that deer will be shot with bows and arrows in the Holiday City and Silver Ridge Park communities. Previously, multiple officials told Patch that these rumors were false. Read More: Deer Round-Up Rumors Addressed By Berkeley Officials

In spite of that, residents continued to be concerned, saying that these matters were discussed at Homeowners Association meetings. They said that starting Sept. 10, the hunt will begin for does in Holiday City and Silver Ridge.

A spokesperson for the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection told Patch that the DEP has no information regarding deer hunting in senior communities.

Berkeley Councilman Michael Signorile, a frequent advocate for senior communities, told Patch that "there are no plans in place at the moment" regarding a deer hunt.

"To date there has been no decision regarding a deer hunt specific to the Holiday City area," Signorile said.

He said that there was a deer population issue in the area that poses a danger to residents.

"There are health issues, property damage and an increasing number of automobile accidents within the Holiday City borders. The rise in these incidents can be funneled to the fact that there are no natural predators in the area, opening the deer population to a steady and unnatural rise," Signorile said. "Add to that the residents that feed the deer illegally and we have created a perfect environment for them increase in numbers."

Berkeley police Lt. Peter La Rocca has coordinated the state Fish and Wildlife to meet with the 10 associations that make up the Senior Coalition of Berkeley Township, Signorile said. State officials discussed the pros and cons of deer population control with the communities, he said.

These meetings, while informative, did not lead to a decision being made on the hunt, Signorile said.

"There is a lot of research that needs to be done before the State and the Police Department can permit any change to the current regulations pertaining to hunting in the zones that encompass areas adjacent to the Holiday City associations," he said.

State regulations would not permit shotgun or bow hunting within specific distances of residences. Only a few associations that have a common area would qualify for a hunt if one were to occur, Signorile said.

Signorile said no official decisions have been made. Silver Ridge Park West said that they have not made any official decisions yet, and would not until permission was given.

"Silver Ridge Park West is private property, so a deer hunt cannot occur without our permission. We have not given permission," HOA President Georgine Natelli wrote in a newsletter dated Aug. 12.

Natelli wrote that in order to give permission, safe areas for tree stands would need to be identified and then those areas and how the hunt would be conducted needed to be presented to homeowners.

However, residents are still concerned that the hunt will happen in their communities. One resident said that many homeowners are angry and she plans to protest. A Change.org petition was created to address the hunt, with nearly 700 signatures.

Correction: An earlier version of this article stated that Silver Ridge Park West would not participate in the deer hunt. The community actually has not made any official decisions. Patch regrets this error.