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Neighbors tell Randolph commissioners Fuller Mill shooting range harms nearby residents, ask for restrictions
Summary
Multiple residents told the board the Fuller Mill gun range has operated with unpermitted structures and excessive hours, urging the county to restrict hours and require sound mitigation; speakers cited county zoning changes and alleged repeated permitting violations.
Several neighbors of the Fuller Mill shooting range addressed the Randolph County Board of Commissioners during the public‑comment period, saying operations have harmed nearby property values and quality of life and asking the county to act.
Fritz Wang (speaker 7) urged the board to restrict operating hours to 9 a.m.–5 p.m. Monday through Saturday (closed Sundays and federal holidays), saying the range’s current hours stretch from 9 a.m. to sunset daily and that neighbors suffer daily noise. He alleged the range constructed improvements without permits and had been operating in zoning that no longer allows shooting ranges except in heavy industrial areas; Wang said planning and zoning’s 2021 UDO change shows the county failed to protect residents.
Amy Wang (speaker 8) said county records show five unpermitted shelters (two 20‑by‑40 and three 20‑by‑50) and questioned why email threads between residents and staff often ended without clear conclusions. Isaac Kaufman (speaker 9) disputed the club’s historical claims about continuous use since 1979, saying berms and shelters were built decades later, that club membership has grown from about 100 to over 600, and that neighbors who predate the shelters deserve reasonable mitigation. Multiple speakers requested sound barriers or enclosure measures as practical mitigation rather than outright closure.
The speakers asked the board to enforce permitting rules, consider noise‑ordinance enforcement, and either require sound‑mitigation measures or restrict hours to reduce impacts on the surrounding households. The board acknowledged the concerns during public comment; staff and planning personnel did not present a formal enforcement action in the meeting record, and commissioners did not vote on an enforcement motion during the session.
Next steps: residents urged further staff investigation and enforcement action; the board did not record a formal directive in the meeting minutes for immediate enforcement during this session.
