A Cuyahoga County Council committee on Nov. 5 voted to send Resolution 20250301 to the full council for second reading. The resolution would award up to $45,000 from the District 11 ARPA Community Grant Fund to the city of Beachwood to cover the sterilization portion of its 2025'26 deer-management program.

Ben Lombardi, communications manager for the city of Beachwood, told the committee that the total cost of the 2025'26 deer-management program is $185,925 and that the city is requesting $45,000 from county ARPA funds specifically for sterilization work. Lombardi said the city would cover the full cost of culling and that the requested county funds would go "entirely towards sterilization." He said Beachwood had surveyed residents, reporting 79% support for continuing deer management and 59% support for a combined culling-and-sterilization approach.

Lombardi and Deputy Chief John Resick described regional coordination with Shaker Heights and South Euclid and said the Ohio Department of Natural Resources has approved sterilization as an acceptable management tool when conducted alongside culling. Beachwood described the operational approach as female-only sterilization: crews inventory does, dart and tranquilize animals, perform an ovaryectomy in a field surgical unit, provide pain medication and antibiotics, tag the deer and return them to the capture area. Lombardi said the city will include an ODNR-required opt-out process for residents and that police officers will ride with sterilization teams to address homeowner concerns.

On costs, Beachwood representatives said sterilization is not "exponentially higher" than culling and estimated the per-animal cost to be within about $1,000 of culling in their program, noting local factors (for example, meat-processing and donation tied to culling) affect totals. The city also cited South Euclid data showing reduced deer-vehicle collisions after sterilization efforts.

Committee members asked for population estimates and details about opt-out notification; Beachwood said it uses thermal imaging and periodic inventories but did not provide a firm total deer population for Beachwood. The city said teams would notify residents where possible and would remove darts and tend to any animal that experienced an adverse reaction regardless of opt-out status.

The committee voted by voice to move the resolution to the next full council meeting for second reading. The motion was made by President Miller and seconded by Councilman Jones; members present voted in favor.

Beachwood officials requested the county ARPA support to implement a sterilization component they described as a humane, evidence-based complement to ongoing culling.