A group of Greenburgh residents wants to shut down a privately owned shooting range they say is a noisy nuisance and potential safety hazard, but supporters say neighbors of the range in a newly constructed housing development should learn to deal with the long-operating business.
The Westchester County Police Revolver and Rifle League on Ardsley Road, a nonprofit that has no affiliation with any police department, has been temporarily closed since June 12 as police investigate claims that a resident was struck by a stray bullet fragment while in her backyard near the range.
The Birch Hill Road woman told police she had been struck in the leg by a flat circular object. The resident, who suffered a small scratch on her leg and was treated at the scene, believed she had been hit by a piece of a stray bullet, according to police. Greenburgh detectives continue to work with other police agencies to analyze the fragment and determine its origin.
That home is in Ardsley Chase, a 24-unit housing development constructed by Toll Brothers on a huge swath of previously undeveloped land next to the gun range.
Town Supervisor Paul Feiner, a Democrat, said he will introduce legislation at a July 15 special meeting of the Town Board that would close the shooting range, which has been in business since the 1940s, according to Greenburgh officials.
“I feel strongly that outdoor shooting range facilities should be regulated and share neighbors”™ concerns about noise, safety and environmental concerns,” Feiner said in an email.
Feiner said at the special meeting the board will schedule a public hearing and forward the ordinance to the town Planning Board, asking for a recommendation and report on the ordinance.
Robert Bernstein, an attorney and president of local civic group The Edgemont Community Council, drafted the legislation, which would regulate all outdoor pistol and firearm ranges in the town. If the ordinance becomes law, it would charge new ranges a $250 permit fee and require at least a quarter mile between a new or existing range and any residence, school or public space.
That aspect of the law would effectively force the closure of the Ardsley Road range.
The law also would compel a range to minimize noise coming from its property and file a site plan that includes design to ensure containment of any bullets to the site. The proposal requires ranges obtain $5 million worth of liability insurance.
The July 8 Town Board meeting saw both supporters and detractors converge on Town Hall, with the pro-gun range contingent suggesting that Greenburgh should work with the owners of the shooting range to try to reduce noise and ensure safety rather than close the business.
The Ardsley Road firing range is on a parcel of land owned by Consolidated Edison Inc. Bernstein said on the community council”™s Facebook page that he modeled his proposal on firing range regulations from around the country. Since the property was not being used by Con Edison as part of its utility operations, which are regulated by the state, any ordinance should not be hindered by the electric company”™s ownership, according to Bernstein.
Several residents looking to close the gun range criticized the town supervisor for taking campaign donations from the developer of Ardsley Chase. The community council suggested the town could have put noise reduction measures and added safety buffers as a condition of approving the subdivision.
Feiner said he declined campaign donations from the group after a 2007 ethics law was enacted in the town. He also said he had recused himself from the vote on the subdivision because he lived in Boulder Ridge, a condominium development near Ardsley Chase. Many of Feiner”™s neighbors had opposed the project and he said since he lived close to the development he did not take a stance on the Toll Brothers application.
A vindictive law designed specifically to target the Range and shut it down. There were multiple failures on the part of the Town, ConEd, Toll Brothers and the residents to sense the upcoming encroachment and try to work something out. The Range was there for decades
If you look at the layout of the Range the natural features create an excellent barrier that prevents escapements.
The Range is being portrayed as a liability to the community, but in reality is an asset. It’s affordable – much more so than the indoor facilities around Westchester, whether current or about to open – convenient and yes, SAFE.
It’s also allows police bearing any sort of legitimate badge (former, or retired) to shoot for FREE. The officer doesn’t pay to use the Range, nor is a mark on a ledger made and their department “charged back.”
We’re repeatedly stating to the community that there is no danger, yet we are more than willing to invest the dollars and sweat equity to make it even safer, and quieter.
This is no different than people who move near an airport and then complain about noise. “The community council suggested the town could have put noise reduction measures and added safety buffers as a condition of approving the subdivision.” This is what should have been done.