IOWA CITY, Iowa (KCRG) – Iowa City’s deer population is growing – with the latest data showing nearly 560 deer in just under five square miles.

On May 14, the city asked the state’s Natural Resources Commission for professional sharpshooting, but that request was denied.

The police department received 35 calls for deer collisions last year. According to the city’s 2026 drone survey, the population has risen 16% to about 116 deer per square mile.

Concern for driver safety is one of the reasons the city wants to bring the number down to a safer level of 25 deer per square mile.

City management’s perspective

Assistant city manager Kirk Lehmann said although an urban bow hunt is the long-term strategy for population management, the city is working towards a hard reset with the sharpshooting.

“We do believe the data suggests that some sort of targeted sharpshoot is going to be necessary and ultimately that will depend on approval by the Natural Resources Commission,” said Lehmann. “We look forward to continuing working with them and the DNR.”

He said the NRC wants to see more results from the city’s urban bow hunt program before signing off on it.

Participation in the urban bow hunt is growing, with only 3 deer harvested in 2020 and 62 deer by 22 hunters in 2025. Lehmann said that was a 40% increase from the past year.

“When it comes to urban bow hunts, that does allow hunters to get additional buck tags and so that’s a popular incentive,” he said.

Lehmann said the city is also working to increase outreach and the amount of land available for the hunt.

A professional sharpshoot would be paid for locally – and Lehmann said it was included in the fiscal year budget.

A resident’s perspective

Seeing deer is a near daily occurrence at George Rickey’s house on the east side of town – in sunshine, rain or snow.

“It’s a nice city, nice community, and I didn’t realize I was moving into a wildlife preserve!“ he said. ”Recently, it has really exploded.”

Although he enjoys seeing the deer, he points out the possibility of disease and the danger to drivers as concerns – as his friend has hit two deer in the past two years.

“I’d rather see them in my backyard and peacefully wandering around than in my windshield,” he said. “Because I’m a former EMT and I can tell you that those kind of accidents don’t end up really well.“

Rickey said he wouldn’t be a fan of a sharpshoot as he wants the management to be extra cautious and said a bow hunt would have more “control.”

In the meantime, Rickey said the deer are pretty friendly when he encounters them – recounting a recent time a neighbor was selling their house and five deer wandered through his backyard.

“I said, there’s a great selling point if you’re selling to a family that’s got kids… ‘Hey look, we’re going to move in right next door to a game preserve!’” he said, laughing.

Although he said he drives carefully on roads that deer frequent, he will continue to enjoy seeing them in the neighborhood.

“Well, they’re here, live with them. Just try to work it out where everybody can coexist,” he said.

The Iowa State Cyclones have been making up for lost time recently, securing commitments from several high school football players to bolster their Class of 2027.

After some recent commitments, there are now 14 players committed to play for head coach Jimmy Rogers in the future. Two of them happen to be quarterbacks, Cash Hollingshead and Blake Moser.

Both players took part in camps recently in Ames and performed well enough to receive scholarship offers. They didn’t want to miss out on the opportunity, accepting the offers shortly after receiving them.

However, they won’t be competing against each other on the quarterback depth chart in the future. Instead, Hollingshead is going to be targeting Moser in the passing game, with the talented athlete officially accepting a challenge from the Cyclones.

Iowa State secures commitment from Blake Moser

Moser took part in the drills at camp at wide receiver and has committed to Iowa State, looking to give the skill position a chance instead of accepting an offer from the Portland State Vikings, Idaho Vandals, Montana Grizzlies or Northern Arizona Lumberjacks to play quarterback.

“I want to play receiver, and I really like what’s going on here,” Moser said, via Bill Seals of Cyclone Report (subscription required).

Listed at 6 feet and 180 pounds, Moser was as dynamic with his legs as his arm during his junior year. He completed 155-of-233 pass attempts for 2,612 yards with 39 touchdowns and only six interceptions.

On the ground, he racked up 850 yards and 16 touchdowns, showing incredible athleticism that Rogers and Iowa State are going to look to take full advantage of, initiating his transition to wide receiver.

Blake Moser has athleticism to successfully transition to wide receiver

Moser impressed during his opportunity at camp, showing incredible speed in his 40-yard dash and a skill set the coaching staff thinks will translate to wide receiver after playing quarterback and running back in high school.

“I ran a 4.37 for my 40, so I think initially they liked my speed and then my playmaking ability.

“When I was running one-on-ones, like even in high school I’ve been playing quarterback and running back, but was able to go out and get some really good reps. (Coach Jimmy Rogers) just told me I’m just good at football and one of those players that they really want to develop,” the Lake Stevens product said.

It will certainly be interesting to see how his senior year goes. Knowing that a positional change is coming once he begins his career with the Cyclones, it is fair to wonder if he will start the transition during his senior year with Lake Stevens.

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Noah Gratias is an Iowa State alum from Waukee.

Whether in political debates, Bleeding Heartland essays, or everyday conversations, the idea that Iowa is in decline is frequently invoked. Many Iowans worry about brain drain, water quality, health care access, and the job market.

Still, Iowa is better off than much of this rhetoric suggests. By many measures that count, including affordability, education, and health care, Iowa remains one of the country’s best places to live.

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