Range at Micheaux CLOSED

[Evan]

I just went up there last week to find it closed. I was wondering what happened to close it down.

[ironhorse]

any further updates on the range?????

[Evan]

I stopped in the DCNR last week and the lady there told me that there is no immediate plan to reopen the range. The new head of the DCNR will make the decission after he gets settled in, I guess. She said to call around the end of August and they may know something.

[songbrook]

Do you think we'd stand a better chance of seeing tghe range re-opened if we all stopped in as a united group to ask to discuss it? I'd be willing to get together with everyone and find us a day and time to stop in, and see if we can get an appointment to meet with the new district ranger.

[Evan]

I think that they have their hands full right now with everything else. They are going through drastic budget cuts right now due to the economy and the state's funds going elsewhere. I think it might work out better of we all stop in periodically one at a time. If they have somebody there every other day it may send a good message. If the range re-opens, I hope that the people responsible for the closure never come back. As with everything, it only takes one a**hole to ruin it for the rest. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

[ironhorse]

i'm off monday and tuesday this coming week. I'll to stop in than.......I'll leave an update when I do..

[Evan]

Great! The more people that go in, the more likely they will be to open it back up.

[gnbrotz]

Sadly, the recent events at a nearby SGL range have only reinforced my inclination to avoid these types of public ranges. I also take issue with the DCNR requirement to "register" as a volunteer before doing any type of good deed on public property, as well as a requirement to actually pay a fee to have an "event" there, even when it's doing something like a cleanup.

I'd much rather spend the time doing work at a range where I'm a member, where trouble-makers are more likely to be identified and lose their access completely.

[songbrook]

I don't care to belong to a club, and many are not as handicapped accessible as the Micheaux range was.

[ironhorse]

There are a bunch of good old boys that use this range often. I have been up there several times where fathers have their kids with thme teaching them to shoot. I saw one gang banger up there once. This is the only closest range there is to me. I think No.1 I have seen public ranges elsewhere that are really torn up and they never close them.... They said that they put cameras up there to stop vandalism, apparently that is not the case.

Number 2.. Whoever is complaining is the same that got it shut down last time, Quit complaining , my kids mess my house up faster than that And I am always cleaning up after them .. All that's happening here is we are being denied a public, free, close, comfortable place to shoot.

My solution,, Let's get it back open.
Let's visit it more often
ANd do what we can do to keep it clean
DON't complain.
AND ENJOY it.
And report people that don't respect the use of it.
JIM