One HOA outside of Ocean City is in hot water for euthanizing 290 Canada geese behind the community's back.
Located just a few miles west of Ocean City, Ocean Pines is technically a homeowner's association, not a town. But with a population of over 12,000 full-time residents and 8,000 part-time residents spread across nine square miles, Ocean Pines is definitely one of the largest homeowners' associations in the country. If Ocean Pines was an incorporated city, it would be larger than 85 percent of America's incorporated towns and cities.
So as weird as it might sound, the Ocean Pines HOA has to make a lot of decisions usually reserved for government bodies. That includes wildlife management.
On June 29, the Ocean Pines HOA gave the U.S. Department of Agriculture officials permission to remove 290 Canada geese from association land. The removal order caught many local residents by surprise. What was even more surprising, however, was the HOA's press release that followed.
"Resident Canada geese that were captured and removed from the community were humanely euthanized and donated to the Maryland Food Bank," the press release concluded.
Many area residents and animal rights activists were outraged at the "wholesale slaughter" that took place without the community's knowledge. However, the Ocean Pines board continues to stand by their decision.
Last Friday, activists and protesters gathered at the association's public meeting. Association General Manager John Bailey started the meeting saying that while he regretted having to authorize the birds' removal, it was necessary because of the sheer amount of excrement the birds were producing.
“While geese can be nice to look at and are tempting to feed they also produce a lot of crap," Bailey explained. “That excrement is not inviting around our amenities, and it pollutes the waters of our ponds. Not only does it pollute the waters within the confines of the association’s 3,000-plus acres, it adds significantly to the pollution of the creeks, river, and bay. Be that as it may, we all have a role to play in trying to prevent that negative impact from occurring.”
The board plans to use everything from border collies to remote-controlled drones to scare future geese away from calling Ocean Pines home.
That has left local residents with more questions than answers. If the association is considering paying $625 a week to bring border collies into the parks every day to scare away geese, some wonder why these methods weren't tried before euthanization was necessary. One local woman blasted the board during the meeting's public comment period for hiding the removal plans from residents.
“For many of us, we can no longer trust our General Manager and our board," she griped. "You’re obviously willing to do things, major things, without letting your resident constituents know.”
What do you think about the situation? Was the HOA in the wrong? Tell us in the comments below!
