Peters Township council moves to continue sharpshooter program

With the success of the sharpshooter program in culling the local deer population, Peters Township council voted to authorize the police department to apply for a permit from the Pennsylvania Game Commission so they can continue the program next year.
The 5-0 vote was taken Monday evening. Council member Tim Pirosko was absent from the meeting.
Two Peters police officers met their goal of bagging 125 deer between February and March of this year. Police targeted specific areas, including Washington, East McMurray, Bebout and Venetia roads. Some Peters residents volunteered their own property.
One of those residents, Mary Anne Meade, spoke in support of the program at Monday’s meeting.
“I understand from the officers that we had the second highest number of deer taken off of our property, I think 12,” Meade told council, adding that while it was effective, their numbers are starting to increase again.
“The damage to our landscaping is just insane … So I’m in favor it. The officers were fabulous. They notified us, they came, and we never knew they were there. The program went flawlessly, in our opinion.”
Peters police were able to harvest more than three tons of venison, and they worked with the Greenville-based Hunters Sharing the Harvest to donate the meat to local food banks.
In other business, council authorized the disbursement of more than $520,000 from the general municipal pension system state aid program.
That money offsets the township’s pension obligations for its employees, which this year is $1,006,223. Next year, the township’s obligation will increase to $1,098,802.