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Spotsy residents will need to duck if police firing range reopens

Keep firing range closed for Spotsy safety.

Date published: 9/12/2005

SEVERAL YEARS AGO, then-Sheriff T.C. Waddy approached me with a proposal for a modest shooting range on county land adjacent to my home. I was assured that the range would be used specifically for the training and practice of Spotsylvania County law enforcement personnel. The proposal included a plat showing the location of the site and detailed diagrams of its construction, and I willingly consented to it. The original project was rezoned, permitted, built, and activated, with the agreement of myself and other neighboring property owners.

After Sheriff Waddy left office, the range morphed into a dangerous monster. The original range, as shown on the plat, was abandoned and a new range was constructed one-half mile closer to the entrance of the county landfill. We were not notified of the move, nor did we know any reason for it.

Both the old and the new sites of this firing range are located on one of the highest points in this area, 386 feet above sea level, as is the police radio tower. There are no natural barriers in any direction.

According to standards described in the National Rifle Association Firearms Fact Book, the ranges are in inadequate safety zones for the weapons used. It is my understanding that unsafe sites cannot be grandfathered, by the way.

The range that was in use most recently is pointed directly at Hebron Church Road and my dwelling. During winter, in my basement family room, with all windows closed and the TV on loud, I could hear the sound of pistols, high-powered rifles, and frequently machine guns, as well as, although I couldn't identify it, the occasional mysterious sound of explosions--grenades? mortars? plastique?--sometimes as late as 11 p.m. This was even more disturbing during warm weather to those within earshot. Some of us complained to the Sheriff's Office and elsewhere. Answers were largely amiable, but evasive. There were some denials and no information, follow-up, or apparent concern.

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Date published: 9/12/2005