Southfield council adopts emergency moratorium after outcry over gun store next to two daycares

Southfield City Council on Sept. 29 approved an emergency moratorium on new firearm sales establishments and shooting ranges after hours of public comment from parents, daycare operators and neighborhood residents who said a planned Red Zone Firearms store sits too close to two childcare centers.

The council voted to adopt the moratorium on a motion by Councilman Tim Hicks, supported by Councilwoman Hogue; the motion passed by voice vote. Council members said the pause will give the planning and legal departments time to draft and pursue zoning changes intended to prevent similar sitings in the future.

Why it matters: dozens of parents and childcare workers testified that the store’s proximity normalizes visible firearms near children, creates daily anxiety at drop-off and increases risk in a shared parking area used for preschool pick-up. IXL Learning Center and Baby Genius Learning Center — the two centers named repeatedly by speakers — share a driveway easement with the Red Zone property, a fact speakers said increases the chance children and customers will be in the same spaces.

Residents pressed the council for immediate action. Michael Brewer, who said his daughter attends IXL, said: “I think it’s unacceptable from a proximity standpoint.” Anne Clark Ors, owner of Baby Genius Learning Center, told the council she learned of the store only after a sign went up and said, “This gun shop needs to be relocated. Its opening at this…