Letter to the Editor: Deer Hunt in Park is 'Dangerous'

I am a resident of Lawrence and am very concerned about allowing deer hunting in the Pole Farm which is connected to Mercer Meadows, Rosedale Park and joined to the new soccer field on the Lawrenceville-Pennington Road.

There has never been legal hunting in this preserved land and the numbers of people using this property including bicyclists, horseback riders, walkers and runners have increased since the trail improvements by the county.

The deer hunting idea is very dangerous and is a safety hazard regardless of what notices are posted given the multiple access points on Cold Soil Road, Keefe Road, Blackwell Road and Federal City Road.

There is no apparent vetting of the hunters nor any apparent plan to post park rangers at all access points. The safety zone of 150 feet is insufficient given the range of bow hunting equipment, which can exceed 500 yards.

There has been no public discussion which I am aware of although it affects citizens of Lawrence and Hopewell. There is also the issue of possible animal cruelty in the event of wounding deer with arrows but not killing them.

However, the major risk is to human life given the diverse usage and number or people who are daily users during all hours of the day of these facilities.

- Tony Singleton, Cold Soil Road, Lawrence Township