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Council hears plan for regional police training range near city hall; members request noise, health and siting studies
Summary
Police presented a federally funded modular firearms training facility proposed next to Cottonwood Heights Police Department; the $2.1 million grant covers most equipment but the city reported total estimates near $2.29 million. Council asked for neighbor outreach, decibel testing and clarification of long‑term maintenance before any vote.
Cottonwood Heights Police Chief Robbie Russo presented a plan to house a Wasatch Front regional public-safety firearms training facility on a city-owned site adjacent to the police station and city hall, saying the project is funded by a federal grant and intended for use by multiple agencies.
The proposal, Chief Russo said, is supported by a $2.1 million federal grant for the containerized range itself; city staff later presented a project estimate that includes storm-water work, an eight‑foot perimeter wall and other add‑ons, bringing the total to about $2.288 million. Chief Russo described the facility as a modern, ventilated, steel‑enclosed range with automated air‑monitoring, HEPA filtration and contracted lead‑removal services and said it would provide both live‑fire and simulator training for officers and school guardians.
City council members and staff emphasized why the proposal matters: proponents said it would expand ready access to scenario‑based de‑escalation and force‑option training across the Wasatch Front and reduce recurring range rental costs. "The grant we received was 2.1 million," Chief Russo said during his presentation, adding that the unit would reduce off‑site rental fees and create outside‑agency rental revenue.
Opponents and some cautious members flagged proximity, noise and environmental questions. One council member asked for a certified decibel study and a formal accounting of lead‑handling procedures before the council advances the project. "I would like to have a study done of what [noise] would mean for the community," the council member said, noting a recommendation from an occupational‑medicine review that suggested larger buffer distances for noise and for lead‑handling activities.
Staff and the police described mitigation measures they would deploy: an insulated modular container unit, a landscaped eight‑foot wall, automated ventilation and HEPA filtration, routine inspections and contracts with specialized hazardous‑waste vendors to remove and recycle lead. The chief and staff also said outside agencies using the range would be bound by written agreements restricting ammunition types and indemnifying the city for damage.
Council members further debated siting options. Some urged the city to examine an interlocal partnership to place the facility outside Cottonwood Heights; police and staff said the grant was obtained for a Cottonwood Heights asset and that placing the site inside the city helps preserve local control and ease operations. Staff said they will notify neighbors within a 250‑foot radius and arrange vendor briefings.
Next steps: councilors asked staff to continue engineering and utility coordination, to conduct targeted neighbor outreach, and to produce independent noise and environmental testing and clearer long‑term refurbishment and maintenance cost estimates before any final council vote to accept funding or approve construction.
