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Plan commission tables expansion and definition of sports shooting range overlay after resident safety concerns
Summary
The commission tabled proposed zoning text and map amendments to expand the Sports Shooting Range Overlay District and to limit allowed firearms to 'small-caliber' rifles and shotguns; staff and the applicant said more detailed definitions and safety standards are forthcoming, and a nearby resident raised concerns about notification and stray bullets.
The Pleasant Prairie Plan Commission agreed to table proposed zoning text and map amendments that would expand and refine the Sports Shooting Range Overlay District (SSRO) and add permitted accessory uses.
Staff presented changes that would limit shooting activities tied to hunter-safety education to small-caliber rifles and shotguns, add accessory noncommercial uses such as beekeeping (with standards), noncommercial agriculture, education classes, and noncommercial tent camping, and place the overlay over additional parcels owned by Conservation Education LLC and the Des Plaines Wetlands Conservancy. Staff said some law-enforcement or training activities had been conducted historically on the site and that staff would return with further language to clarify those uses.
David Moore, who identified himself as owner of Conservation Education, described range operations: rifle shooting is into bermed areas, controlled by a range master, and he said the range has operated for decades with safety protocols in place. "The rifle shooting is all into berms, controlled with a range master," Moore said.
Resident Kim Hall said she lives down the road from the parcels under consideration and raised concerns about notification and proximity to homes, saying she had not been notified and that a nearby house was previously struck by stray bullets before the landowner purchased and demolished it. "I wasn't notified about this… I do have a concern with how close they are starting to get to residential areas," Hall said.
Staff answered that the statutory/ordinance notification radius notifies owners or homes within 300 feet, and that staff anticipated additional ordinance language would be returned for further review. A commissioner moved to table the item to allow staff to draft clearer definitions of "small caliber" and other operational clarifications; the motion was seconded and carried on a voice vote.
Why it matters: The proposed changes would broaden the SSRO and permit additional accessory uses across a wide swath of land adjacent to the Des Plaines River, raising questions about where shooting activities would be allowed and how safety and notification will be enforced.
Next steps: Staff will work with property owners and stakeholders to refine definitions and proposed language and will return to the plan commission at a future meeting for further consideration.
