Opening up a gun range in the San Francisco area is kinda like opening up a strip club in the heart of the Bible Belt. There may very well be a market, but there’s also going to be a lot of local opposition to the business.
The “not in my backyard” crowd was out in force in Walnut Creek, California on Wednesday night as the city’s Design Review Commission held a public hearing on a plan by Elite Armory to convert a former carpet store into an indoor shooting range and gun shop. Though Elite Armory had some support, it sounds like the naysayers outnumbered fans of the idea.
“This isn’t Texas. This isn’t a gun community,” one person said during public comment.
What does that even mean? Walnut Creek is part of the United States, and the Second Amendment is just as valid there as it is in Waco, Texas. It doesn’t matter if this resident believes the city isn’t a “gun community.” Residents still have the right to keep and bear arms, and should have a place where they can train with their firearms too.
Julie Hollinger lives in the nearby Larkey Park neighborhood and attended the meeting with other residents opposed to the project.
“It’s a completely inappropriate location,” Hollinger said. “It’s a family neighborhood and we are very, very concerned about an element that could show up.”
What element would that be, I wonder? Is Julie worried about gangbangers invading Walnut Creek? Hell’s Angels bikers? Circus clowns with submachine guns?
If Elite Armory is able to open up a range on a busy street zoned for commercial use (not tucked away in her “family neighborhood”), what Hollinger will find is that its customers are her neighbors, coworkers, and maybe even family and friends.
Hollinger said she recognizes people’s Second Amendment rights but believes the proposed range should be located elsewhere.
Opponents also raised concerns about noise and safety, while supporters said the range would provide a controlled place for gun owners to practice in a region where shooting ranges are limited.
Does Hollinger have an alternative location in mind? I doubt it. I’m guessing that like most NIMBYs, Hollinger doesn’t care where the range is located so long as it’s not near her.
As for noise and safety concerns, Elite Armory has already conducted a survey that concluded the sound of traffic on the street where the range would be located is louder than the sound of gunshots from inside the range. There are hundreds of indoor ranges operating safely across the country, and there’s no reason to believe that Elite Armory would be any different if its allowed to build out a range in Walnut Creek.
According to the Design Review Commission, the city received about 100 emails regarding the planned range, with 54 percent opposed and 44 percent in support. That’s actually more support than I expected for a Bay Area city like Walnut Creek, but that doesn’t mean the city’s Planning Commission will green light the project.
The Bay Area has a dearth of publicly accessible ranges, and Elite Armory would provide a convenient location for San Francisco, Oakland, San Jose, and Contra Costa County residents to practice with their firearms… as well as get the training that’s required by the state of California in order to acquire a Concealed Handgun License. I think that’s all the more reason for Walnut Creek officials to approve the range, but I’m sure those who think their city just isn’t a “gun community” disagree.
Editor’s Note: The radical Left will stop at nothing to enact their extreme gun control agenda and strip us of our Second Amendment rights.
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