City deals with prairie dogs before July 4 event

The City of Midland has plans to plug the burrows of hundreds of prairie dogs in the field at Lamesa Road and Loop 250, Monday, 6-29-15, to allow parking for the July 4th festivities in Hogan Park. Tim Fischer\Reporter-Telegram less The City of Midland has plans to plug the burrows of hundreds of prairie dogs in the field at Lamesa Road and Loop 250, Monday, 6-29-15, to allow parking for the July 4th festivities in Hogan Park. Tim ... more Photo: Tim Fischer Photo: Tim Fischer Image 1 of / 5 Caption Close City deals with prairie dogs before July 4 event 1 / 5 Back to Gallery

The prairie dogs are not going to get in the way of parking for the Star Spangled Salute.

City officials said this week that an area near Hogan Park where prairie dogs are known to reside will be leveled before the Fourth of July festivities that are scheduled to take place just south of Christensen Stadium at the park in northeast Midland.

“We will (use a backhoe to level the mounds) and then keep an eye on the location to make sure the prairie dogs don’t tear it up again,” city spokeswoman Sara Bustilloz wrote in an email. “But we aren’t trying to move them out of the area beforehand at this point (they might leave when all the people arrive anyway).”

The city has already attempted to solve its prairie dog problem with what officials called the “Rodent-ator,” which, according to Director of Animal Services Paul O’Neill, is a machine that fills the prairie dog holes with oxygen and propane and creates an explosion. O’Neill said the Rodent-ator is supposed to knock the prairie dogs unconscious and the soil collapses on them.

Days after putting the Rodent-ator into action, 90 percent of the holes were back open, O’Neill said.

“It didn’t work out because of the soil,” O’Neill said.

The reason the city has to deal with the prairie dogs is to allow for an extra parking area for the Fourth of July events at Hogan Park. Officials expect thousands of people to attend the event, and the site just across Lamesa Road is expected to accommodate extra parking.

“It hasn’t really been effective trying to move them out first, so we are going to skip that part, level out the mounds, fill the holes anyway and keep an eye on it up until the event,” Bustilloz said.

Officials didn’t want people parking in that area and then stepping into a prairie dog hole and possibly get injured.

“There will be lighting in the parking lot to help people see where they’re going post-fireworks,” Bustilloz said.

The Midland Chamber of Commerce picked Hogan Park after the decision was made to move the event from downtown.

As for the prairie dogs, O’Neill said if there is interest to make that area just to the west of Hogan Park — or any area in Midland — a prairie dog sanctuary — similar to Prairie Dog Town at MacKenzie Park in Lubbock — then plans must be worked out with Texas Department of Parks and Wildlife.

“That is what that area is now,” O’Neill said.