Remedies for pesky pigeon, goose problems in Mondovi discussed by City Council

by Beth Kraft

Flocks of pigeons that continually make a mess of sidewalks and storefronts in downtown Mondovi and a goose population that is rapidly multiplying at Mirror Lake received attention by the City Council at its second regular meeting of the month on Tuesday, July 28.

Bill Mitchell of Plunkett’s Pest Control appeared before city leaders that night to detail some options for curbing the birds.

“You’re not the only city that has issues [with nuisance birds],” Mitchell told the Council.

Baiting and trapping the pigeons in hopes of reducing their numbers and working with the DNR to remove geese from Mirror Lake were agreed upon as the best courses of action.

But Canadian geese are a federally-protected species, Mitchell said, which limits the city’s options for discouraging them to reside and nest at Mirror Lake.

The goose population there has grown exponentially over the past few years, increasing the amount of droppings on the grass and sidewalk areas at the park. City leaders noted geese formerly used Mirror Lake as a stopping-off point, but now a growing flock seems to live there permanently.

Coyote decoys and even grape extract can deter the birds for a time, Mitchell said, but the geese eventually realize those measures are not a threat and will return. Fencing around the lake could prevent geese from exiting the water at the park, but Mitchell noted the fencing would need to be taken down in order for people to fish, making the option very time-intensive.

Amery holds an annual goose hunt regulated by the DNR that enjoys “great success,” Mitchell said, suggesting that the city contact the appropriate officials to move forward.

As for the pigeons, Mitchell referenced his company’s current work in Spooner to trap pigeons there. He doesn’t recommend poisoning them as it could result in dead birds dropping on streets, sidewalks and parked cars downtown.

Once the pigeons are trapped, they would be destroyed or could be sent to local dog trainers, Mitchell said.

In addition to the growing number of pigeons downtown, Council members pointed to pigeon populations at area dairy farms and worried that eliminating the birds in the city would only be addressing part of the problem.

Mitchell suggested city leaders talk with area farmers to see what could be done in terms of hunting or poisoning pigeons there.

Mike Larson shared that he had some luck sniping pigeons downtown, after receiving permission from the Council to do so, but they quickly learned to stay away from him.

“They’re very smart,” Larson said, noting the birds fly off as soon as he exits his vehicle downtown.

City leaders acknowledged that no matter what they do to address the city’s pigeons, they aren’t likely to succeed at getting rid of them completely.

“We’re not going to eliminate [the problem], we’re just going to try to control it,” Councilman Jerry Rud said.

Mitchell said Plunkett’s would charge a maximum of $1,000 to bait and set traps, then check them every day. If the Council agrees to go that route, it would be better to wait until the weather turns cold later this fall and food sources for the pigeons are reduced.

“We have some good information and now we can do some investigating,” commented Mayor Treig Pronschinske.

The Council plans to discuss the city’s pigeons and geese further at a future meeting.

Also that night, Councilwoman Lynn Smith pointed to recent playground renovation projects in nearby Strum and suggested accomplishing a similar feat in Mondovi.

Referencing a July 9 article in the Mondovi Herald detailing the official opening day of new playground equipment at Crystal Lake Park in Strum, Smith pointed out that grants are available for playground equipment and a few of Mondovi’s playgrounds could use a facelift.

Amanda Taylor, head of the Strum Parks and Recreation Committee (SPARC), has now obtained three grants from KaBOOM! and the Dr. Pepper/Snapple Group to spruce up parks in Strum.

Smith made a motion to ask Mondovi City Administrator Dan Lauersdorf to contact Taylor to tap into her grant-writing expertise in hopes of obtaining a funding boost for Mondovi’s parks. The motion received unanimous support from the Council.

Smith also referenced the city’s Comprehensive Plan, adopted in 2008, and mentioned scheduled maintenance and upkeep of city parks as outlined in the plan.

“Can we honestly say we’ve met our plan?” asked Smith, pointing to outdated playground equipment at some of the city’s parks. “I just think we can do better there.”

Having combed through the city’s budget numbers, Smith brought up a few other questions for the Council to ponder that night.

The city’s total landfill/recycling debt of $890,000 is one figure that caught Smith’s attention.

Lauersdorf acknowledged the annual losses in that budget line are growing as fewer people buy the city’s yellow garbage bags and opt to utilize private haulers instead.

The city has come to a point where it cannot raise bag prices further without driving more people away. Recycling fees that appear on city residents’ water bills were raised last year in hopes of curbing the losses, but city leaders agreed that night that something else needs to be done.

Simply put, the city’s landfill and recycling center are not profitable anymore, Lauersdorf said, and the city may have to look at privatizing the service.

Councilman Mike Krisik complimented the job city workers do in running the dump, calling it a “clean service.”

“I’d hate to see it go,” Krisik said, “but if it’s bleeding us...”

Mayor Pronschinske said the city is well aware of the heavy losses the garbage and recycling services are turning in and the subject will be discussed at length at a future Council meeting.

“We are going to look at our options and what would be best for our city,” commented Pronschinske.

In other business that night, the Council approved the following:

• temporary Class “B” picnic license for KC Catt Memorial Softball Tournament, Aug. 7-9 (Krissy Johnston); operator license for Shelby J. Pfund (White Pig); temporary Class “B” beer license for Mondovi Softball Association, Aug. 3-6 (Josh Dregney)