SANDOWN — In response to complaints from residents, the Sandown Police Department is poised to discontinue use of its firing range and instead conduct its firearms training at the Chester Rod and Gun Club.
The department has been using a parcel on Greenwood Hook in the Wells Village Road area since 1986, when the selectmen granted approval.
But police Chief Joe Gordon said development has inched closer and closer over the intervening years, and nearby residents find the noise disturbing. He also has concerns about the retrieval of the shells and casing as an environmental issue.
With that in mind, Conservation Commission member Chuck Crowe, a member of the Chester Rod and Gun Club, recently went to club President Scott Jenkins and asked how much it would cost for the Sandown police to use the facility as its firing range.
Not only did the members of the gun club vote to allow police to use their facility, they agreed to let the department use it free of charge for the remainder of this year, once the chief and his range officer qualify according to club rules. Next year, it will cost the town $150 to use the facility, and the following year it will cost $100.
"The officers will have access to the indoor and outdoor range," Crowe said, "and the only requirement, other than qualifying, is that they be accompanied by either the chief or the range officer."
Gordon said he plans to meet with Jenkins in the near future to hammer out the details.
"This is a good move for us, and it is just a matter of making sure we get all the appropriate things attended to," he said. "It is a fair price and appears to be a good solution."
