Oak Bay has completed its cull of up to 25 deer by killing only 11. Does the mayor think that by having 11 fewer deer there will be no more car accidents, no deer attacks and no more poop in the parks (his words)?
Of course he doesn’t, which makes me ask why did he kill 11 innocent animals? To prove a point? To show his cronies how big he is? What a waste of time and at a cost of $16,000 plus. He can be proud of himself because very few others are.
When Oak Bay first mentioned a deer cull they said there would be a cost of $500 per deer for a one-time cull of 25 deer, totalling $12,500. In a staff report to council dated Oct. 14, 2014, it states that half of the $25,000 budget has been spent.
In the Request For Proposal dated Dec. 5, 2014 section 16 under Budget and Costs, it says the budget for the capture and euthanizing will not exceed Oak Bay’s budget of $15,000. Further along in section 19, subsection 19.1, it includes payments on scenarios based on 25 deer at $600 per animal to a maximum of 25 deer, with a cost for an eight-week period from $3,000 to $15,000. For fewer deer (up to four) for that same two- to eight-week period, payment will be $2,800.
In a CFAX interview when asked how much money had been spent, the mayor said the only figure he knows is the $16,000 paid to the contractor. He admitted there would be other costs which would come up in the report.
So from an initial cost of $500 for each of the 25 deer, the cull has actually cost almost $1,500 plus for each of the 11 deer. What happened to the maximum of $15,000 specified in the RFP? Nowhere in any document has the $16,000 been mentioned.
William Jesse
Oak Bay