Ontario board approves hunting proposal

By William Lundquist - Argus Observer
Tuesday, October 2, 2007 12:21 PM PDT

Ontario - Some pheasants and a few hikers may be watching their backs more closely after a slight majority of the Ontario City Council agreed with the argument Monday night that hunting can be conducted safely on city land near the wastewater treatment plant.

The council voted 4-3 to approve a 10-year recreational lease, to be reviewed annually, for Pheasants Forever.

Council members made it clear they were unanimous in their requirement the hunting group work to settle any conflicts with the Four Rivers Healthy Communities Trail Committee if the lease was to stand any chance of being renewed next year.

“I feel there’s a real strong consensus that the groups need to work together,” City Council member John Gaskill said.

Ontario Mayor Joe Dominick said both uses of the property were “in the best interest of the community.”

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After listening to representatives from both groups, as well as two Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife officials, Dominick voted with council members Lewie Allen and Jim Mosier to deny the lease.

The mayor said he wanted time to gather more information on the proposal, while Mosier said he will still contact people in his former hometown of The Dalles about a combined hunting/hiking facility that has operated for years in that Columbia Gorge city.

The four council members voting for the lease indicated they were no more enthusiastic about voting yes than the others were in voting no.

The council agreed to continue to study the issue and to ensure the hunters and hikers can share the land amicably.

Ontario resident David Stiefvater, speaking for Pheasants Forever, said he was sure that goal could be accomplished.

“I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t think this was a safe sport,” he said.

Stiefvater said both groups vying for use of the land shared the common goal of getting people outdoors.

Stiefvater said a grant Pheasants Forever received from the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife will fund a law enforcement officer on the property 20 hours a week. Hunters will have to unload their weapons as they pass through a safety zone that will extend to the river.

“Conflicts can be resolved by educating all users,” Stiefvater said.

Several citizens spoke for the safety of hunting. Roy Youngblood, who owns a game bird farm north of Ontario, said insurance companies love to insure shooting preserves because they have to pay so few claims.

“There’s a false impression about how dangerous hunting is,” he said.

Vale resident Gary McClellan said the seven and a half gauge shot used in shooting ranges falls to the ground at 210 yards, and the six gauge preferred by pheasant hunters travels only a bit farther. Stiefvater said rifles will not be used in hunting at the wastewater site, only shotguns with pellets.

Two fish and wildlife officials backed up the hunting group on the safety issue during the Monday session.

“I do believe it will be a great step for the city,” ODFW employee Scott Torland said.

Perhaps intending no pun, he added, “People will flock here for the birds.”

John Muir, a wildlife habitat biologist with the agency, said fewer hunters would use the site than people might expect. He said an 80-acre hunting site south of Nyssa is open every hunting season, but was used by hunters only 63 days last year. He said bird hunters prefer the early morning and evening hours and wouldn’t be present every hour of the day.

“We certainly believe from an agency standpoint, and I personally believe, that we can do this safely,” Muir said.

Ontario City Manager Scott Trainor said the hunting group would have to assume all legal liability.

Outnumbered by hunters 25 to one, Four Rivers Healthy Communities Trail Committee spokesperson Kathy Daly said, “We’re not against hunting. We’re trying to find ways we can work together. There’s just the perception of guns when families take their kids out for recreation.”

She said her group has been working since 2003 to build a hiking site and the wastewater property met all its needs.

In a written report to the city, she suggested the hunters be limited to the north side of the river, larger safety zones be created in some areas, and hunting days be limited. She said the trail group might agree to close the trail at the opening of some hunting seasons and have limited access at other times.

After listening to both sides, the councilors at first seemed ready to table the issue until they could gather more information.

With hunting season about to begin, however, and the winter about to curtail trail use, Councilor Bruce Tuttle moved to approve the 10 year lease, as long as it could be reviewed annually. Council members Dan Cummings, John Gaskill and Susann Mills agreed.

In other City Council news: The council unanimously approved a license agreement to allow the Malheur County Educational Service District to place a wireless Internet relay transmitter on the city’s water tower.

Because of the complaints of some merchants about city trees blocking views of their businesses from the road, the council voted unanimously to have the city staff prepare a comprehensive tree plan for city trees.

The council also approved the consent agenda, which contained an ordinance removing all code sections pertaining to system development charges while preserving the controversial utility capitalization fee of 17 percent on water bills.