Mayor Dale Alessandrini on Monday said he hopes a transfer can occur by the end of summer. Several steps remain, including testing the animals for disease such as tuberculosis.

City Manager Jordan Stanchina said the city is seeking approval from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources to reclassify the City Park deer pen. The current license doesn’t allow the deer to be moved.

Meanwhile, Alessandrini confirmed during a city council meeting Monday that the DeYoung Family Zoo in Menominee County is willing to accept the herd.

“Hopefully we can get it worked out,” he said.

Several deer relax in the deer pen in Iron Mountain's City Park. (Terri Castelaz/Daily News)

At a Feb. 2 meeting, facing a deadline for renewing the pen’s license, the council voted 5-2 to eliminate the facility and its 17 deer.

The herd has been a City Park attraction since at least the 1940s, but the council faces pressure from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to correct pen deficiencies. Supervision of a local veterinarian would also be required to keep the 6-acre enclosure operating.

Critics of the City Park attraction say it’s a cruelty perpetuated by decades of inbreeding. Supporters of the deer pen, including Friends of City Park, have encouraged the city to find a way to maintain it as a popular park centerpiece.

DeYoung Family Zoo near Wallace is an 80-acre facility that has been open to public since 1990. It’s open from May until the end of October and, according to its website, includes a number of natural habitats.

Absent another alternative, the council’s decision last month to eliminate the pen would set the stage for the entire herd to be culled and processed into venison for food banks. Culling has been a regular practice, but never has the city faced to decision to remove the entire herd. More fawns will arrive in spring, adding to the number of animals enclosed.

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Jim Anderson can be reached at 906-774-2772, ext. 85226, or janderson@ironmountaindailynews.com.