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WESTON, Conn. Deer hunting season opens on Weston public lands Saturday, but local home owners shouldn't worry about stray shots.
Well shoot in wooded areas so there will be no run-ins with citizens, animal control officer Mark Harper said. The hunters shoot from tree stands elevated 15 to 20 feet above the ground so they shoot at a downward angle with no ricochets.
The hunters are scheduled to shoot with bows and arrows at the Weston Transfer Station and the Fromson/Strassler property. Eight homes on Upper Parish Road abut Fromson/Strassler, but hunting won't occur near them, Harper said.
The woodsmen will wear safety harnesses, so the possibility of anyone getting injured is zero," Harper said.
The goal of the deer hunt is to curb the over population of deer. We want to thin the herd because they come out on the roads and it will also have an impact on Lyme disease, said First Selectman Gayle Weinstein. It makes our population safer.
In past years, 10 deer have been killed at the transfer station, which spans 50 acres and 20 at the Fromson/Strassler property, which is 80 acres, Harper said.
The Weston Board of Selectmen approved the controlled deer hunt at last weeks meeting. No more than three hunters at a time will be allowed at the Weston Transfer Station and no more than four on the Fromson/Strassler property.
Weinstein will meet the hunters before signing permits that allow them to hunt. Adjacent property owners will be notified of the hunts at least five days in advance.
Harper said he plans to bring the hunters in to meet Wednesday with Weinstein. Its the same group of guys who have been hunting for years, theyre crack shots, he said.
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